Xu Mu could feel that Shi Fumeng had thrown all caution to the wind.
Saying something like that in front of so many people—wasn't it no different from urinating in public?
Even Xu Mu felt a bit embarrassed.
"Get up."
He pulled Shi Fumeng up from the ground. "Don't talk nonsense. If I'm giving it to you, just take it. It's not for free—I'll need your help when the time comes, and you have to show up."
Shi Fumeng pressed her lips together, tears spilling from her deep blue eyes. "Okay! I promise."
[Affection +30]
In the distance, Ye Tong watched it all unfold. She smiled and nodded—it looked like they had gained another teammate.
Song Nuanyang stood there awkwardly. Since the other woman had knelt down, she felt she had to say something too.
A pill made from a ninth-grade heavenly treasure was something she understood all too well.
Back when she served as the Grand Elder of the Yin-Yang Sect, she had explored ruins with the sect master at the time, all because they'd heard rumors of a ninth-grade heavenly treasure.
But her competitors back then were the sect masters of the five great sects—that alone showed how valuable such a treasure was.
"Xu Mu! From now on, no matter what happens, I won't hesitate. No matter how dangerous it is."
Song Nuanyang looked at Xu Mu with a serious expression.
This was the greatest sincerity she could offer.
Xu Mu smiled and nodded. "Knowing that, I can rest easy."
They quickly tidied up the place and returned to the villa grounds.
Xu Mu took a rough look at the justice points he'd earned this time—over ten thousand points, enough for eleven ten-pull draws.
He broke into a satisfied grin. The main contribution this time came from Shi Fumeng.
The others followed behind, each contributing an average of over sixty affection points. With Ye Tong's doubling effect and the double card on top of that,
he felt refreshed. Looking around at the others, he could tell from the smiles on their faces that they felt the same.
Dinner had started earlier than usual today. Since it was still early, Ye Tong suggested that all the women gather at Feng Yue's place.
Xu Mu had wanted to tag along, but Ye Tong stopped him, saying it would be a private gathering for the ladies.
Xu Mu just chuckled at that. He remembered that Ye Tong used to be more reserved and passive—
the type who knew everything in her heart but rarely spoke up, always waiting for an invitation to act.
Now, it seemed she had changed too, taking the initiative to bring people together.
Xu Mu was genuinely happy about it. It meant Ye Tong had fully settled into the family.
He didn't stay to eavesdrop on the women's conversations. Instead, he got in his car and drove off.
Since he still had time, he figured he'd go check on Li Yun and the others.
It had been a while since he'd seen them.
He drove to the urban village where Li Yun lived. Sensing with his perception, he found her in the kitchen, cooking.
Zhao Yingying wasn't home—it wasn't a weekend after all.
Xu Mu parked the car by the roadside and walked over to knock on the door.
Through his perception, he saw Li Yun come to the door and look through the peephole.
Then, she excitedly opened the door. "Xiao Mu!"
[Affection +20]
"Sister Yun, I've been busy lately and haven't had a chance to visit."
Xu Mu smiled. "Is it a good time to come in?"
"Of course."
Li Yun immediately stepped aside and pulled him inside.
Xu Mu looked her over. She seemed younger than before, even though it had only been a while.
The pressure of life could wear a person down, but now that her circumstances had improved, her body was beginning to return to normal.
After all, Li Yun was still under forty.
She was actually a year or two younger than some of those long-running goddesses on TV, like the Fairy or Da Mi. The reason Li Yun seemed older was that she had a child early.
Today, she was wearing a simple pink house dress. Her impressive figure formed soft curves, her body full and ripe, exuding a mature charm from head to toe.
"Is Yingying not coming?" Xu Mu asked as he sat on the sofa.
"She should be here soon. She said she wanted to eat at home today."
Li Yun sat down next to Xu Mu, speaking warmly. "Stay for dinner today. It's been a while since you last came."
Xu Mu nodded. "Alright."
He'd only eaten a simple stew earlier, anyway.
"How's work going?" Xu Mu asked.
"Great. The people at the company are really good to me. The business has been growing too, and I got a raise last month."
Li Yun's eyes began to glisten as she spoke. She knew very well it was all because of the man in front of her.
He had saved her and her daughter. She didn't even want to think about what might have become of them without him.
[Affection +20]
"Why are you crying all of a sudden?"
Xu Mu reached out and wiped away her tears. "Isn't life good now?"
"It's exactly because life is so good now that I'm so grateful."
Li Yun grabbed Xu Mu's hand and said softly.
"I came by to give you and Yingying some pills. You know about martial artists now, right?" Xu Mu smiled.
"Of course. Lately, with work, I've met all kinds of people. I even heard that the Xu family has replaced the Dai family as the hidden clan of Jiangbei."
Li Yun nodded gently.
"I want to give these pills to help you both reach the peak of Dark Force. That way, you can protect yourselves."
Xu Mu didn't plan to elevate Li Yun and Zhao Yingying too much.
The peak of Dark Force was enough to handle ordinary people. If real martial artists came after them, even higher cultivation wouldn't guarantee their safety.
"Xiao Mu... why are you so good to us?"
Li Yun rested her head on Xu Mu's shoulder, her tears soaking his clothes.
"What's wrong? Has someone been bothering you?"
Xu Mu immediately took her hand.
"No. It's just that lately I've met more people. A lot of them know I'm a single mother, and some have tried to show interest. But I've turned them all down. My heart... has already been filled by someone."
As she spoke, she began deploying Imperial Arms.
Xu Mu looked at her face and asked the same question he'd asked at the door. "Is it a good time to come in?"
"Of course..."
Li Yun said softly, lowering her head.
Right there, she began practicing the technique Xu Mu had taught her before—the Water Dissolution Art.
Xu Mu leaned back on the sofa and stared up at the ceiling.
He'd been tense the past few days, stuck in the inner realm without a chance to unwind.
"Sister Yun, come here."
"Let me wash up first. I came home from work and went straight to cooking. I haven't showered yet."
"It's fine. I don't mind."
Xu Mu waved it off.
"I mind."
With that, Li Yun hurried off to her bathroom.
Xu Mu sat on the sofa for a while, feeling the flames inside him grow more intense. In the end, he followed her inside.
his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…
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.
to panic—he has a system. As long as an investment target dies, he can claim a reward. And since he is immortal, the one thing he has plenty of is time. ... Countless years later. “Immortal Emperor of Longevity? I invested in him.” “Supreme Celestial Venerable? I invested in him.” “Undying Empress? I invested in her.” “...” “Heh. Once they’ve all died, even the Heavenly Dao will have to kneel and call me Dad.”
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."
