The Jialan Empress was utterly devastated!
She had never imagined that upon waking, her own daughter would actually blame her, the mother!
Just what kind of bewitching potion had Jiang Che fed her?
How had her once sweet and obedient daughter turned into this?
"Ling'er... Ling'er, listen to me..."
Jia Ling'er's expression turned sorrowful, looking pitiful beyond words. Combined with her frail appearance after just being freed from petrification, she gave off the aura of a grieving widow.
"Mother... you... you still took action against him..."
The girl lowered her head. She didn’t openly rebel against her mother but chose silence instead—after all, her mother still held immense weight in her heart.
"I didn’t kill him! And I couldn’t even if I tried! You have no idea... Jiang Che has been..."
Just as the Empress was about to expose Jiang Che’s wicked deeds, his leisurely voice echoed in her ears.
[Your Majesty, have you forgotten our agreement? If I stop providing my heart’s blood willingly... Ling'er might just turn back to stone by tomorrow!]
Jiang Che’s voice was infuriatingly smug, transmitted directly to the Empress.
[You—!]
[Ding! Host successfully scammed the Jialan Empress, earning 400 million points.]
Truly, only the Empress could yield such massive rewards—over two billion points in such a short time. No ordinary person could pull that off!
"Mother... what has he been doing?" Jia Ling'er pressed urgently.
"You—he’s not even dead! Just turn around and look!" The woman pointed behind Jia Ling'er, exasperated.
The girl slowly turned her head...
"Cough..." A young man stood there, his clothes tattered, blood trickling from the corner of his lips. His chest was drenched in crimson, the terrifying wound visible even through the fabric.
Jiang Che’s face was deathly pale, looking like he was on death’s doorstep.
"Jiang Che!!!"
Jia Ling'er was overjoyed to see him, but the sight of his miserable state left her stunned.
She glanced at Jiang Che, then back at her mother.
"Mother... did you torture him?"
[Ding! Host successfully scammed Jia Ling'er and the Jialan Empress, earning 300 million points.]
The Jialan Empress was speechless. She had never met someone so shameless!
In just one second, Jiang Che had changed into this pitiful state—clearly to manipulate Ling'er’s sympathy. Once he revealed the truth about the "Midnight Heartbreak," Ling'er, with her tender heart, would undoubtedly fall completely for him.
There’d be no turning back then!
"Cough... Ling'er, it’s not like that. Don’t misunderstand Her Majesty. I... cough... volunteered!"
When it came to acting, the entertainment industry owed Jiang Che an Oscar.
Corny? Maybe. But who cared if it worked?
This smooth combo was bound to leave Jia Ling'er utterly fooled.
[You... what exactly are you trying to do? Lies will eventually be exposed...]
Jiang Che shot a sidelong glance at the frantic Empress. What’s the rush? Just stay there and keep generating points!
"Ling'er, I did it willingly."
Jia Ling'er blinked. "Willingly? What happened? Why am I no longer petrified?"
"It’s nothing. Her Majesty just... told me another way to save you, and I took it."
Jiang Che smiled weakly.
Jialan Empress: "???"
[What do you mean? Explain yourself... Since when did I tell you anything? Don’t you dare pin this on me!]
She had sorely underestimated Jiang Che’s shamelessness.
This guy was clearly shifting the blame onto her while painting himself as the noble hero—even risking Ling'er resenting her.
[Your Majesty, remember our agreement. Stay calm, alright?]
Calm? She was about to be branded a cruel mother! How could she stay calm?!
"Another way to save me? There’s another method?!" Jia Ling'er exclaimed excitedly.
"What is it???" Her beautiful eyes sparkled with hope.
Before, there had only been one way—Jiang Che’s death.
Now that there was another option, no matter what, it had to be better than dying, right?
The naive girl thought so.
Truthfully, if her feelings for Jiang Che had been ambiguous before, now... she had finally recognized her own heart.
She might not have fallen completely for him yet, but Jiang Che had already carved a permanent place in her heart.
This emotion had taken root in twisted circumstances, leaving even her bewildered.
"It’s nothing... as long as you’re safe, Ling'er." Jiang Che didn’t elaborate, merely gently smoothing her hair.
But his demeanor only deepened Jia Ling'er’s suspicion.
She studied him again, and her pupils shrank in horror.
"Jiang... Jiang Che, what’s with these injuries? You’re so badly hurt... is it because of... me?"
"Shh." Jiang Che pressed a finger to his lips. "Don’t ask, Ling'er."
Yet the more he avoided it, the more convinced she became.
Jiang Che must have paid an unbearable price to break her petrification.
She’d read enough romance novels to recognize this trope—the male lead striking a deal with the devil or wagering his life to save the heroine.
Tears streaming down her face, the girl threw herself into Jiang Che’s arms, right in front of the Jialan Empress, and the two began whispering sweet nothings.
Jialan Empress: "......"
She was on the verge of a breakdown. Despite her unrivaled power, she was helpless to change anything. Worse, this damned human was shamelessly fondling Ling'er right before her eyes!
And to think... not long ago, the same wretched human had kissed her too! Now this—!
"Enough! Ling'er, I’ll tell you the truth!"
Veins bulged on the Empress’s forehead as she used her magic to separate the two.
"Ling'er, I... I scoured our ancestors’ records and finally found a way to break the ancestral curse. But..."
In the end, the Jialan Empress caved, covering for Jiang Che.
With Ling'er’s life in his hands, she had no choice but to comply.
"What? Midnight Heartbreak?!"
Jia Ling'er clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with terror.
Then her gaze fell on the bloody wound over Jiang Che’s heart.
[Ding! Host successfully scammed Jia Ling'er, earning 50 million points.]
Instantly, twin trails of tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Waaah... how could you be so foolish?! Midnight Heartbreak... how much pain did you endure?!"
Girls were emotional creatures, and Jia Ling'er was no exception.
Once a haughty young mistress, she’d had her pride crushed by Jiang Che, her spoiled temper worn away...
Now that he’d saved her life, how could her heart not sway?
She wasn’t Shen Yu, after all.
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.”
] [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!"
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)
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
