There weren’t many people Chen Miemie could really talk to, and even fewer who had ever helped him.
Persimmon had once helped Chen Miemie comprehend the power of [Stories], doing him a great favor. Although the [Miracle Potion] had repaid that debt, the bond formed through their exchange of favors had not disappeared.
“Where is Persimmon buried? I—no, Huangyi will go pay her a visit.”
“Buried? Mm, no. Persimmon isn’t dead—or rather, she hasn’t died completely.
“When I was ‘ten,’ Persimmon was affected by something, and her health took a sharp turn for the worse. She became bedridden.
“An ordinary witch might have died soon after. Persimmon was different. Unlike me, who had been declining for the past three thousand years, she had cultivated for many years and surpassed me at my peak. Even when her lifespan came to an end, she still found a way to hold on for a long time.
“About twelve years ago, before her body completely collapsed, she thought of another way out. With the help of her [Mystery], she entered the world of stories completely.”
The tuft of hair on Chen Miemie’s head stood straight up. “‘Completely’? ‘Entered’?”
“That’s right. In our world, she really is dead. But if you enter certain story worlds within books, you might run into her.”
Chen Miemie inwardly shouted, “666.” Persimmon really knew how to have fun.
“If I get the chance, I’ll go meet her in a book.”
“Heh. It’s not easy to run into her. She can take on countless forms in books—changing her appearance, age, and even race at will. Even if she were standing right in front of you, you wouldn’t recognize her unless she told you who she was. But I do have a little trick.
“What trick?”
“She can change everything except her name. If you meet someone named [Granny Qiu], that’s definitely her.”
Those few remarks had been nothing more than casual conversation. Chenpi pulled the discussion back on track.
She blinked expectantly. “Do you think Huangyi can solve the problem of my constantly declining abilities?”
Chen Miemie thought for a moment, then slowly shook his head.
“Chenpi, immortality isn’t eternal life.
“Every race has its own natural lifespan. That is fate. You’ve tied the vitality of an entire race to yourself and forcibly extended its life. That already goes against the natural laws governing life.
“Three thousand years of longevity is already an unexpected blessing. Do you really want your entire race to live forever? According to what you said, once you’re gone a thousand years from now, will your race simply go extinct?”
Chenpi hurriedly explained, “I think you’ve misunderstood my abilities. The [Orange Curse] isn’t nearly that powerful. It can’t mass-produce my longevity, and not every witch can live for hundreds or thousands of years.
“When I use the curse on human witches, in practice it only adds to their existing lifespan. An ordinary low-level witch might live twice as long as a normal human. Only high-level witches, who already gain longevity as their strength increases, can live for much longer.
“Compared with the other six races, witches aren’t born through reproduction; they arise purely through mutation. We’re scattered and sparse, and our numbers are limited. We need a certain population to ensure our race’s survival. Survival of the fittest—we continue to seek new paths, which can be considered in line with the natural processes of racial survival and evolution.”
Chen Miemie offered no opinion on the matter.
“I’ll pass your request on to Huangyi. But you’d better prepare yourself mentally. From the sound of it, there may not be any good solution, and it will probably take quite a long time.”
“It’s not as urgent as it was before. Sixteen of the seals have already lost their effect, and I’ve begun preparing to reclaim the power I spread throughout the city. So for now, I should be able to hold on for a while longer.”
“What do you mean, reclaim your power?”
Chenpi climbed onto the soft leather armchair, trying to make herself look a little taller.
“Chen Miemie, you may not know what the core materials of the Book-Sealing Library’s seals are.
“Don’t let my current appearance fool you. My real name is Ju Zhi. I was once the [Great Sage Orange].
“The chains sealing each book are my orange veins.
“The shells enclosing the sealed spaces are the remnants of my orange seeds.
“Every inch of soil beneath the city has been stained with orange juice as red as my blood.”
“Impressive, impressive. Now get down before you fall.” Chen Miemie offered the praise against his better judgment. “After all these years of wind and sun, how much can you still reclaim?”
“Probably not much. But it should be enough to last a few years.”
Chen Miemie agreed to pass Chenpi’s new request on to her.
Next, it was Chen Miemie’s turn to ask questions.
“Do you know what’s been going on with Chen Miaomiao lately?”
“Chen Miaomiao? I’ve been too busy to pay much attention to her movements. But not long ago, I think I heard one of the witches from the [Tea Party] mention that she’d gone to a city belonging to the demon race to take care of something. I don’t know the details. Why?”
“I tried contacting her, but she hasn’t replied to my messages in a long time, so I came to ask you.”
“I’ll make some inquiries. I’ll let you know if I hear anything.”
Chen Miemie hadn’t managed to learn anything about Chen Miaomiao and was just preparing to leave when someone knocked on the door.
“Come in,” Chenpi called.
Xiumu entered, pulling a wheeled suitcase behind her.
When she saw Chen Miemie inside, she greeted him.
“Chen Miemie, if your origins weren’t complicated enough already, you’re apparently a representative of a new race as well.”
Chen Miemie immediately denied it. “If you’re going to put it that way, then you can’t put it that way.”
Chenpi hurriedly shouted, “Enough, both of you. Xiumu, get to the point.”
“Teacher, there’s no longer any need to keep pretending with President Yu. I’m going to leave the library and move back to the Scholars’ Academy.”
Chenpi frowned. “Your projects are all here. Why are you going back?”
“Teacher, this is the witches’ headquarters, after all. Before, I had the excuse of ‘seeking refuge,’ but that excuse is gone now. It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to keep staying here.”
“What, has someone been gossiping about you? I was the one who told you to stay. Anyone who has a problem can come to me.”
Xiumu was silent for a moment. She did not report anyone.
“Teacher, it’s dark underground. Living here by myself for too long makes me uncomfortable.”
Chenpi scratched her head. “Hmph. If you want to leave, then leave. It’s not as if I’m eager to keep you here.”
Xiumu nodded, bowed to Chenpi, and turned to go.
Chen Miemie’s voice reached her from behind.
“Xiumu, I was one of the factors that led to Li Liang’s death. Do you hate me?”
Xiumu stopped but did not turn around.
“I’m a scholar. I can distinguish right from wrong and cause from effect. Without your fault, I won’t take my anger out on you.”
“Is it ‘won’t,’ or ‘don’t dare’?”
“Is there a difference?”
“There is.”
The three people in the room stood as still as statues. An unusual silence settled over them.
Nearly a minute passed.
Only then did Xiumu turn around and look Chen Miemie directly in the eye.
“Won’t,” she said again.
“Good.” Chen Miemie clapped his hands once. “There’s something I’d like to work with you on.”
“What is it?”
“Find out who really killed Li Liang.”
“Why? You and Li Liang weren’t close.”
Chen Miemie’s expression hardened:
“How could I let it go? Li Liang is a direct subordinate of [Cicada], and he even holds a position in the [Everlasting Moon] Merchant Association. He’s rendered the association no small service over the years. He killed one of my employees, then framed me and shifted the blame. I’m not going to let this end here.”
[Xiumu] gave Chen Miemie a deep look. “All right.”
“There’s one more thing. Xiumu, would you be willing to work for me?”
The question left both Chenpi and Xiumu utterly dumbfounded.
One moment, they had been on the verge of crossing swords; the next, Chen Miemie was extending an olive branch?
Chen Miemie smiled. “Why are you both staring at me like that? Xiumu, you failed to become a witch through mutation. You’re neither a witch nor a human anymore, so the anomalous faction is the best place for you.”
Chenpi’s eyes lit up. “Xiumu, what are you waiting for? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!”
Xiumu smiled as well. “Thank you for the invitation, but I refuse.”
Chenpi grew anxious. “You idiot…”
Chen Miemie waved a hand, stopping Chenpi from continuing. “Why?”
Xiumu’s smile grew even brighter.
“Who I am is decided by what’s in my heart.
“I’m human, and I’m a witch.
“If I weren’t human, the Scholars’ Institute wouldn’t have let me become a Grand Scholar. And if I weren’t a witch, this library wouldn’t truly have let me live here.”
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."
orn and Humiliation】【Forced Love】 In his past life, Lin Ran was betrayed and murdered by his girlfriend and family, while the yandere female aristocrat, who had treated him as a mere plaything, avenged him by doing in his enemies. Upon seeing the yandere female aristocrat lying in the same coffin, ready to die with him, Lin Ran realized how profoundly mistaken he had been. Reborn, he abandoned the fickle campus beauty and wholeheartedly embraced the yandere female aristocrat's arms. "Ran! If I dig out your eyes and turn them into a specimen, you'll only be able to look at me!" Lin Ran: "Darling, kiss me!" "Ran! If I break your legs, you won't run away anymore, right?" Lin Ran: "Love, hold me tight!" "Ran! If..." Lin Ran: "Hush now! Love me more!" Luo Yao: ... Seeing his scumbag dad: "Take him out!" Seeing his stepmother: "Get rid of her!" Seeing his brother: "Eliminate him!" Seeing his white moonlight: "Send that to Southeast Asia!"
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.
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.
