[Forbidden Fruit Bestiary] flew in a circle around Withered Poetry: “It really is you. You can still shed leaves now? How impressive.”
Withered Poetry was puzzled. “Have we met?”
“Not yet, but we’re good friends.”
Withered Poetry ignored [Forbidden Fruit Bestiary] and turned toward the strange entities blocking the door.
“Please clear the way. We need to leave.”
Qinghua and Loop exchanged glances. They actually had no reason to stop them, but if so many book-type strange entities were allowed outside, something major would surely happen.
The situation had arisen so suddenly that Chen Miemie had given them no instructions. They could only make the decision for themselves.
Withered Poetry noticed their hesitation.
“Everyone, this should be your nest, correct? There are so many of us book-type strange entities, and our passive effects are gradually beginning to take effect. With nearly a thousand layers of passive effects stacking together, not only will we harm one another, we may also destroy this place. Please let us pass.”
As expected of a book-type strange entity—even though it had only just been born, it was already full of wisdom. Its words had struck directly at the heart of the matter.
Qinghua waved her hand and stepped aside. “The exit is that way.”
There were simply too many books. Even if their individual strengths varied, their combined power was still overwhelming.
Besides, in the logic of Qinghua and the other strange entities, protecting this room came first.
If the room were destroyed, it would not merely mean the loss of the shop. More importantly, if the room were gone and Chen Miemie could not find his way back, he might become stranded in history. That would truly be disastrous.
Led by Withered Poetry, the various books formed a torrent of books in midair and flew toward the outside of the shop.
Even though the books moved quickly, there were simply too many of them. It took a full five minutes for them all to leave.
Only after the books had flown away did the strange entities in the shop finally breathe a sigh of relief and begin discussing the situation.
Loop raised the first question.
“We can’t follow Miemie outside, so what era will these book-type strange entities appear in? The first year of the Eighth Epoch, or Year 120 of the Seventh Epoch?”
Pure Water considered the matter carefully, but still could not reach a conclusion. “Hard to say. The shop is mysterious, and Chen Miemie is extraordinary. Everything is full of uncertainty. It might not be either of those two points in time. They could appear in any era.”
Qinghua had begun thinking about problems very differently than before. She now tried to consider things from Chen Miemie’s perspective.
“No matter what era they appear in, the location should be the Sealed Book Pavilion. If so many newly born strange entities suddenly appear, could it lead to rivers of blood? If Miemie found out, he’d probably feel rather troubled. After all, they escaped from the shop.”
The strange entities all nodded.
After spending so much time together, they understood Chen Miemie’s way of doing things very well. Chen Miemie was not a saint who pitied all living things. His position was somewhat detached from the world. He did not care whether strange entities killed humans or humans killed strange entities to harvest their materials—but there was one prerequisite: the cause could not be him.
The book-type strange entities that had flown out of the shop were like wild horses that had broken free of their reins, soaring recklessly through the [Grand Library].
Their appearance quickly attracted the attention of the city’s administrative and public-security personnel.
The city authorities reacted swiftly. Before long, piercing alarm sirens echoed throughout the entire city.
[Juzi] waved a hand, dismissing the intelligence officer who had come to report the emergency.
“[Shopkeeper], it seems our tea party will have to end here for now. I have an urgent situation to deal with. Please excuse me.”
“Go ahead.”
Watching [Juzi] hurry away, Chen Miemie was puzzled. “What happened? Why is she in such a rush?”
Chen Miemie had temporarily lost contact with the strange entities in the shop, so he had no idea what was happening. Since this was his only chance to leave, he had not planned on returning early that night.
He flew into the air and immediately noticed something strange.
Looking down from above, he could see that the entire city had seemingly “come alive.”
Everywhere he looked, there were books.
The streets had become rivers, and the countless books flowing along them were like water, filling his entire field of vision.
And it was not only the streets.
The exits of every building, the rooftops, the gaps between structures—countless books seemed to possess lives of their own, occupying every corner.
Books walked across the ground, flew through the air, tumbled from the tops of skyscrapers, and crushed against one another. The entire city had become an ocean of books.
Chen Miemie had barely descended when a huge ring of books surrounded him. They did not attack. Instead, they all asked the same question:
“Do you read?”
Chen Miemie did not answer immediately. The books repeated the question, their voices growing louder and the emotions in their tones increasingly agitated.
“Do you read?” “Do you read?” “Do you read?”
Chen Miemie cautiously tested them. “I’d like to read a comic book.”
The books immediately stopped asking questions. They began waving and dancing about, looking extremely happy.
Before long, a comic book titled The Complete Fairy-Tale Collection leaped into his arms and automatically opened to the first page.
“Read.” “Read.”
Chen Miemie pretended to start reading. The books immediately stopped paying attention to him and let him do as he pleased.
The emergency response efficiency of the [Grand Library] was astonishing. A special loudspeaker began broadcasting an announcement throughout the city:
“All citizens, please take note. This is an emergency. A large number of book-type strange entities have suddenly appeared throughout the city, and all ordinary books have instantly become animate as well. Please do not panic when you encounter them, and do not attack recklessly. Begin reading. Reading will prevent you from being attacked.”
No matter how little attention Chen Miemie paid to history, after spending more than two months in the Sealed Book Pavilion, he could still guess that this was probably the origin of the later [Reading Day].
The First Year of the Eighth Epoch.
[Sealed Library].
Alarms suddenly rang out above the city.
The citizens discovered that all the books in their homes had “come alive.”
The seals throughout the city lost their effectiveness, and book-type strange entities flew out of their containment.
The streets and alleys became oceans of books.
Piercing alarms and citywide broadcasts echoed through every corner:
“[Reading Day] status is now in effect. Citizens are requested to put aside everything they are doing and begin reading!”
At the Scholars’ Institute, in a secret chamber used to imprison major criminals—
[Stone Speaker] suddenly opened his eyes and sprang to his feet.
“How is this possible? How could [Reading Day] arrive early?”
Mortar Granny did not seem particularly surprised. “What difference does two days make?”
“What do you know?” [Stone Speaker] was extremely agitated. “This [Reading Day] is different from the others. No, I have to get out immediately!”
“Really? The righteous [Stone Speaker] turned himself in, and now he wants to escape from prison?”
[Stone Speaker] took a deep breath and did his best to calm himself. “Mortar Granny, it isn’t just me who needs to get out. We all need to leave. I need your help.”
“How interesting, [Stone Speaker]. You wanted to pass judgment on me and kill me, and now you’re asking for my help?”
[Stone Speaker] tapped the lock once. It broke with a click, and he stepped out of his cell.
He stared earnestly into Mortar Granny’s eyes.
“Granny, according to the original plan, my people were going to destroy some of the seals on [Reading Day], two days from now. Under the immense pressure that would follow, humans and witches would have to work together to deal with the crisis.”
But for some unknown reason, [Reading Day] has come early. If I don’t show up and unite the strength of the two races as planned, then even after [Reading Day] passes, the seal will no longer take effect.
The people outside still think this year will be the same as all the others—that they just need to read for a day and wait it out. They don’t know that this time, reading alone won’t be enough. They must also repair the damage caused by human hands.
If we do nothing today, we’ll lose our only chance to restore it.”
Mortar Granny frowned.
“Create pressure to force the two races to unite? Heh, interesting. Even so, why come to me for help?”
“I destroyed the most important core seal—the one beneath the city library, where the Withering Canticle is located. I need to convince the witches to trust me and repair it in the shortest time possible.”
“What? Have you gone mad?” Mortar Granny cried out for the first time. “The Withering Canticle is the leader of the book anomalies. If it is completely unsealed, every book in the city will run wild! Are you trying to destroy the Book-Sealing Library?”
“What’s done is done. There’s no point saying more. Granny, please help me.”
The judge, Stone Speaker, bowed ninety degrees to Mortar Granny, the “criminal.”
“Snap~”
The lock on Mortar Granny’s cell door broke as well, and she stepped out.
“I’m not helping you. This is my city too.”
ng to die together with you." Lin Xuan is dead, his body thrown into the river by his scumbag lover and her accomplice. She, the president of the Su Group, is decisive, ruthless, and ice-cold. For three days and three nights, she had his body fished out of the river, and without hesitation, she kissed the bloated corpse of Lin Xuan. She laid down beside him in a cold coffin, their fingers intertwined, a smile lingering on her lips as she closed her eyes. The noble and cold-hearted woman, only bending for one man—Lin Xuan. Lin Xuan, with his golden finger, is reborn and returns to the day of his wedding to the treacherous woman. Su Qiang comes to steal the bride. Lin Xuan's eyes light up, eager to pledge his loyalty on the spot, but instead, her kiss transfers a glass of drugged wine into his mouth, causing him to pass out... 【Male Protagonist with Single Female Lead】【Yandere Tycoon】【Action-Packed】【True vs. Fake Heir】
] [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!"
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
