Luo Wei and Tilis had been strolling along the beach for quite some time when, without realizing it, they finally arrived at the location of the small wooden cabin.
“We’re home~”
Tilis walked up slowly and stood in front of the tightly shut wooden door.
Luo Wei noticed a faint circle of blue fluorescence on the door, likely a magical seal Tilis had placed before leaving.
She then reached out her hand and waved it gently in front of the door, causing the magically sealed wooden door to slowly open.
Tilis turned back to Luo Wei, smiling as she gestured for him to come in.
“Come on in!”
Luo Wei nodded and followed her inside the cabin.
He looked around curiously. The cabin wasn’t large, with the most prominent feature being an alchemy table filled with various tools he was quite familiar with. Surrounding the table were several rows of bookshelves and cabinets filled with jars and bottles, presumably containing magical materials.
Although she lived here, there were almost no furnishings related to daily life.
Looking around, the only furniture was a desk, two chairs, and a small bed in the corner—nearly the entirety of her belongings.
Tilis was completely absorbed in her magical research, so she paid little attention to the comforts of life. Even when she lived in her old mansion, her room was always cluttered, leaving Luo Wei with barely any space to stand whenever he visited.
Luo Wei sat down on the chair by the desk and looked at Tilis with some confusion, wondering why she had brought him to her home. Was there some secret she wanted to share with him?
“Let’s have something to drink first~” Tilis rummaged through the cabinet for a while, stirring up dust, and finally found a can of tea that had likely been sitting there for who knows how long.
“I remember you liked this...”
She smiled as she showed it off to Luo Wei. “I came across this during my travels in the southern part of the empire. I remembered you liked it, so I bought it on a whim. It’s good stuff!”
Luo Wei smiled and nodded.
While Tilis brewed the tea, Luo Wei’s gaze drifted to her desk. The only thing in the room that carried a sense of daily life was the arrangement on the desk.
In the most prominent spot on the desk was a photo frame containing a picture of a young, adorable Tilis with a woman in her thirties.
This woman was her teacher, Usoma, the former head of the Magical Hermitage.
Next to the photo was a stack of newspapers...
Luo Wei didn’t even need to pick them up to see his own large photo on the front page of one of them...
In the photo, he was covering his face with his hand, though not completely, revealing an expression that was both annoyed and frustrated...
There were over thirty copies of such newspapers...
And besides these...
Underneath a thick book were scattered piles of newspapers and documents, all in disarray. Luo Wei sneaked a glance and noticed headlines about the Callen University disappearance case and the Saint Callen cultist incident...
So it seemed...
Perhaps she had been keeping an eye on him ever since he returned...
All this time, Tilis, who was thousands of miles away, had been secretly watching him, while he remained completely unaware...
A shiver ran down Luo Wei’s spine, leaving him with an eerie feeling.
Just then, he heard light footsteps approaching from behind.
“Luo Wei, why were you covering your face in the photo?”
Tilis approached with two steaming cups of tea, standing beside Luo Wei. Seeing him looking at the newspapers, she tilted her head curiously.
Luo Wei chuckled awkwardly and slowly accepted the tea she handed him.
“Who knows... Maybe I was in a bad mood that day...”
He couldn’t very well say he was covering his face to avoid being spotted by her, could he?
“Oh... Is that so?” Tilis grabbed the newspaper and carefully analyzed Luo Wei’s pose in the photo.
“It feels like... you didn’t want your face to appear in the newspaper...”
“You must have been hiding from someone, right?”
“No way!” Luo Wei immediately straightened his face and spoke with conviction. “I’m an open and honest person! Who would I be hiding from?”
Tilis tilted her head, watching Luo Wei’s nervous expression, and then smiled faintly.
“Really?”
“Of course!” Luo Wei nodded quickly.
The room fell silent for a moment. Tilis gazed at Luo Wei’s face, her smile deepening.
“Let’s not talk about this anymore...”
Luo Wei tried to change the subject—or rather, steer the conversation back on track.
He looked at Tilis with confusion. “You brought me here because you said you had something to show me, right?”
“Oh, right!” Tilis laughed. “I got so caught up in chatting with you that I almost forgot.”
With that, she leaned over and rummaged through the desk drawer for a moment.
Then, she handed Luo Wei an old notebook.
“This is...”
The moment Luo Wei touched the notebook, a system prompt suddenly appeared.
**[Usoma’s Fragmentary Notes (Forbidden Tome)]**
**[Danger Level: ★★★★]**
**[Contains the early research of the mage Usoma on deities, including numerous forbidden and ominous black magic knowledge. It is a gateway to madness.]**
**[Friendly Reminder: Not recommended for in-depth study. If studied deeply, sanity will decrease by 20, and continuous sanity checks will be required...]**
Seeing Luo Wei’s serious expression, Tilis explained to him:
“This is the notebook my teacher always carried with her. Over a decade ago, she began researching deities.”
“At the time, she secretly established a covert research project behind the backs of the council. The project aimed to search for traces of deities around the world. My teacher believed this was the only way to resolve the centuries-long dilemma faced by mages.”
“You mean the deity research institute on that island now?” Luo Wei asked.
“Exactly,” Tilis nodded. “Six months ago, she and I arrived here as soon as we could and immediately began researching the sea deity of Heglais Town. But the island’s research institute is just one part of it.”
Luo Wei stared at the notebook in his hands, momentarily unsure whether he should open it.
After all, the system had already warned him about the danger of this item. Even though he was extremely curious, he had to consider whether his sanity could withstand such a level of mental strain...
Tilis, thinking he was hesitant to get involved in the secrets of the Magical Hermitage, smiled reassuringly.
“It’s fine. If it’s you, I’m willing to share everything with you.”
“I truly hope we can walk this path of witnessing the truth together.”
“Witnessing... the truth...” Luo Wei felt a slight stirring in his heart.
He took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself, and then slowly opened the notebook titled **Usoma’s Fragmentary Notes**.
I’ll just take a quick look...
Not too much, and I won’t study the black magic inside...
That should be fine.
agon king storylines. At the start, I obtained the "Ultimate Lackey System" - the more I act as a lackey, the stronger I become. What else could I do? I chose to become the personal henchman of the ultimate villain, Su Muwan. I provoke all sorts of chosen ones, snatch away their opportunities, and commit every evil deed imaginable. You ask who's behind me? Hmph! You're not worthy of knowing my lady's name! ...... ....... I am Su Muwan, the eldest daughter of the Su family. Since childhood, I've possessed extraordinary talent in martial arts, which led to my arrogant and domineering personality in my past life. I was even foolish enough to repeatedly challenge those favored by heaven, ultimately resulting in a tragic death. In this life, I must behave and absolutely cannot walk the same path again!! However... SLAP!! "So you're the Dragon King, huh?!" When I saw my little lackey swagger over and viciously slap the Dragon King who was hiding his identity, I felt my heart sink. Su Muwan's suspended heart finally died as she watched Qin Luo, her utterly loyal lackey, standing before her. She fainted on the spot from shock. Heaven is determined to destroy me!! (Pure love 1v1, light-hearted, no angst, single female lead, villain, reincarnation, lackey)
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
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."
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
