Long Aotian drained the last of his draft beer, let out a belch, and slumped onto the stool, exhaling loudly.
Honestly, drinking alone just wasn’t as fun as sharing drinks with a group.
Back in his old world, when Long Aotian was still working construction, his favorite part of the day was knocking off work, grabbing some braised pork head meat, and downing a few ice-cold beers with the veteran workers.
Construction was exhausting, and a drink made sleeping at night much easier.
"Holy shit, Lao Ao, you’re a damn beast," Li Longlong exclaimed, giving Long Aotian a thumbs-up.
Huang Fei and Xu Shuai’s faces were flushed red.
Especially Huang Fei, who had earlier tried to show off by mimicking his dad’s business-drinking style—chugging his glass in one go and theatrically flipping it upside down to prove not a drop remained.
Now, his face burned with embarrassment. Luckily, the alcohol masked most of it, but the memory of his cringeworthy display made him want to dig his toes into the ground.
Long Aotian, sensing their discomfort, grinned and grabbed a lamb skewer. "I’ve got a high tolerance. Not many can outdrink me."
At their age, showing off was practically a rite of passage. He got it.
A simple comment like that could defuse the tension and let everyone save face.
Hearing this, Huang Fei raised his thumb too. "You’re a friend for life, man. Don’t worry—as your bro, I’m gonna teach you how to pick up girls. I swear it!"
"Same here! I’ll pour everything I know into helping you out," Xu Shuai declared, patting his bloated stomach with conviction.
"Alright, let’s call it a night."
On the way back to campus, the three of them kept chattering nonstop.
"Back in the day..."
"Remember when..."
"Back when I used to..."
"Hey, what’s going on over there? Why’s there such a crowd?"
Across the street, a throng of people had gathered outside the music conservatory.
If there was one thing to say about male curiosity—well, it was indescribable. Especially after a few drinks.
Even Long Aotian found himself staring intently.
Before long, the four of them, hands tucked into their sleeves, wandered over.
The crowd was dense, but snippets of curses like "slut" pierced through the noise.
"Whoa, is that a fight?"
"No way, let me see!"
Thanks to his size and sheer curiosity, Long Aotian shoved his way through.
A man in his forties—bespectacled, pudgy, with a face full of hardened flesh—stood there, one hand clutching an iced tea, the other harassing a young woman.
"You took my drink, so you’re coming with me. That’s the rule!"
"What, you wanna jack up the price? Go ahead, name your number! Let your classmates see what kind of person you really are..."
The girl struggled desperately, her pale face frozen in terror.
In her panic, she shoved the man, accidentally knocking his glasses to the ground. One of the temple arms snapped off.
The man blinked, then released her, staring at his broken glasses in disbelief.
"You—you broke my glasses! These were my secret weapon for picking up girls!"
Furious, he hurled the iced tea at her without thinking.
Gasps erupted. The girl flinched, curling into herself.
After watching for a moment, Long Aotian pieced it together: the man had left his iced tea on a car roof, and the girl, jostled by the crowd, had accidentally knocked it off.
Even after she explained it was an accident, he’d harassed and threatened her anyway.
Long Aotian’s sense of justice was already strong when sober. Half a keg of fresh beer only amplified it.
Before anyone else could react, he lunged forward, shielding the girl with his back as the bottle struck him.
"Fuck!"
A sharp pain flashed across his spine before dulling into numbness. His blood surged, skin flushing crimson.
The girl kept her eyes squeezed shut, bracing for impact—but the blow never came. Instead, she heard a low, furious curse.
When she finally opened her eyes, she saw a towering figure standing between her and the man. Her face was ghostly pale, confusion and fear swimming in her teary eyes.
Long Aotian turned, his muscular frame, flushed skin, and the reek of alcohol radiating intimidation.
The middle-aged man recoiled, his jowls trembling as Long Aotian loomed over him. "D-don’t come closer! Stay back!"
"You piece of shit, bullying a girl, huh?" Long Aotian snatched up the iced tea and raised it threateningly.
"Ahhh—!" The man shrieked, scrambling for his car.
No sane person would pick a fight with a drunk.
"Pathetic coward." Long Aotian spat, then picked up the bottle and took a swig.
"Th-thank you." Her voice was cool but trembled slightly, her tone lifting at the end in an oddly endearing way.
"Don’t mention it. And hey, don’t cry. Long-ge can’t stand seeing girls cry." He waved it off like it was nothing, his voice lazy and slightly buzzed—but not unkind.
"Holy hell, Lao Ao, you’re insane!" The stunned trio finally snapped out of it and rushed over.
"Tch—" Someone clapped him on the back.
Long Aotian hissed through his teeth, wincing.
Still tipsy, he instinctively reached around to rub the sore spot.
"You okay?"
"Fine. Just my back acting up."
As the four of them turned to leave, the girl suddenly clenched her fists and jogged after them.
"W-wait!"
They turned to see her holding iodine and bandages.
"Thank you... for helping me. I, uh, bought these. I hope they’re useful..."
Her cool voice wavered, laced with quiet worry.
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
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!"
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.
