After leaving the Martial Arts Department,
Gu Yan returned to his car.
"What's the matter, Young Master? Something good happen?"
Old Gao glanced at Gu Yan through the rearview mirror, noticing the faint smirk on his lips, and couldn't help but ask in surprise.
Whenever the young master wore this expression, it meant one thing—
his heart was practically screaming: I'm delighted.
Those four words said it all.
"Tsk tsk, I just find the Peace Faction people a bit too naive. It almost makes me feel bad for them," Gu Yan remarked, shaking his head. "But never mind that. Let's head back, Old Gao."
Everything was just an act—a carefully crafted facade, sprinkled with just enough genuine emotion to let him gauge the Peace Faction members' true nature.
Aside from those he already knew, like Mei Xue, there were five other members of the Night Operations Special Investigation Team:
Li Chuan (Postnatal Martial Artist), Qin Rong (Innate Martial Artist), Chu Ge (Innate Martial Artist), Zhao Zilin (Innate Martial Artist), and Wang Yi (Postnatal Martial Artist).
Over the past month, he had thoroughly familiarized himself with each of their habits and personalities.
Additionally,
since many events had diverged from the original novel’s plot,
Gu Yan had taken the initiative to re-examine the Martial Arts Department’s structure in this world.
But the information he uncovered matched the original story perfectly.
The Martial Arts Department was divided into four factions:
—Peace Faction, Conservative Faction, Radical Faction, and Coexistence Faction.
Each faction was led by a department head, typically at the Grandmaster level or above.
Their ideologies, however, varied greatly.
The Peace Faction advocated for diplomacy, negotiation, and compromise to resolve conflicts.
They believed violence and war only bred more suffering, so they sought peaceful solutions.
The Conservative Faction prioritized tradition, order, and stability.
They clung tightly to existing values and systems, resisting any drastic changes.
The Radical Faction pursued their goals through any means necessary—
be it force, overthrowing the current order, or extreme actions.
From what he'd learned, their leader had repeatedly pushed for martial arts democratization—
lifting the secrecy around martial arts and letting the general public learn and practice it.
The Coexistence Faction, however, was the most peculiar.
They believed everything had a right to exist.
Even demons (mo-wu)—humans should strive to coexist with them in harmony.
Because of this philosophy, every member of the Coexistence Faction fought alongside one or more demonic partners.
As for Bai Jun, Li Chuan, Qin Rong, and the others... they belonged to the Peace Faction.
Bai Jun, in particular, was being groomed as the faction’s next leader.
Beyond these basics,
the most crucial distinction between the Martial Arts Department and the traditional martial world was...
Silver Qi.
Silver Qi wasn’t naturally occurring—it was artificially cultivated by extracting and refining energy factors from demons.
Every year, the Martial Arts Department conducted compatibility tests on its members.
Those who could withstand its power would gain the ability to wield Silver Qi.
This energy... was devastatingly effective against demons.
When paired with specialized Silver Qi techniques, its potency multiplied exponentially.
Thus, martial artists who wielded Silver Qi were known as—
Demon-Slaying Martial Artists.
And Bai Jun was one of them, his future shining bright.
At this thought, Gu Yan snapped out of his reflections.
Honestly, it was exhausting.
In this world, aside from the final boss, the Night King,
there were countless hidden demons lurking in the shadows, waiting to be dealt with.
Effectively, everyone was juggling two battles—fighting demons while also handling the Night King.
As for how these demons came to be, or where they originated...
Gu Yan could only shrug—
How should I know? The novel never explained it!
After the Night King and the protagonists annihilated each other, the author just... dropped the story.
Gu Yan sighed. The novel might’ve been abandoned, but this world was very much real.
And that left him with too many unpredictable variables.
But whatever—it wasn’t like he’d ever get tangled up with demons anyway.
Why bother worrying?
"Squeak!"
...Er—
Well, Zhua Zhua didn’t count. She was family.
"Squeak..."
......
......
Leng Family Estate
"We’re here, Young Master."
By the time Gu Yan finished playing with Zhua Zhua, they had already arrived.
"Good. Inform Tao Ying of the Peach Blossom Society about the plan for the day after tomorrow," he instructed.
"Tell her not to mess it up."
Old Gao nodded. "Understood, Young Master. Also... regarding Shen Wan'er and Xiao Lin, there’s been some progress."
Hearing this,
Gu Yan’s interest was piqued. He turned to Old Gao. "Details. Now."
"..."
Ignoring his young master’s blunt internet slang,
Old Gao paused briefly before reporting:
"With Xiao Lin’s help, Shen Wan'er’s company has regained its footing and even expanded."
"But that success came with its own set of problems—chief among them, pressure from her family."
"They demanded she give their relatives cushy jobs—high positions with fat salaries."
"Shen Wan'er refused, insisting that if they wanted work, they’d start from the bottom like everyone else. Pay would depend on merit."
"This didn’t sit well with her parents, who felt humiliated in front of their relatives. Tensions flared."
"But the real breaking point was something else entirely."
"Her parents tried to force her into an arranged marriage with some young master from a prominent family—
while handing her company over to her younger brother, Shen Tian."
"Shen Wan'er blew up at them. In defiance, she dragged Xiao Lin to the Shen household as a human shield—
declaring him her boyfriend."
"Since Shen Tian knew Xiao Lin was just an orphaned security guard,
her parents lost it."
"That same day, Shen Wan'er packed her things and moved out, settling in with Xiao Lin at Chunshan Apartments."
"Meanwhile, Shen Tian reverted to his old ways—
constantly threatening to kill himself unless his sister gave him money."
"Xiao Lin stepped in to comfort her, and thanks to the 'assistance' you arranged a month ago,
their relationship warmed up considerably."
"But they still haven’t crossed that final line."
"That’s all."
Old Gao fell silent.
Gu Yan listened, his smirk growing wider by the second.
Ohoho, isn’t this just textbook plot progression?
Perfect. Absolutely perfect.
A security guard. A fake boyfriend. Living together. Life-and-death bonds...
All that’s left is... waiting for the right moment!
Hehehe~!
Seems like this storyline is ripe for harvest!
Gu Yan’s grin nearly split his face. Excellent!
And he already had the perfect moment in mind—
An event that would finally make them bare their hearts to each other!
] [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!"
invincible power, Gu Changge transmigrates into a fantasy world, bound to a sign-in system that grants him cultivation rewards and various peerless treasures daily. While others struggle desperately to break through their cultivation realms, he has long since reached the pinnacle of the Great Dao, becoming a reclusive Emperor whose true strength even he himself cannot fathom. Originally planning to lie low and retire peacefully on Purple Bamboo Peak, the system suddenly issues a new task — take on disciples. With no other choice, Gu Changge casually picks up a few disciples: The eldest disciple, born with a War God Constitution, is thrown a copy of "War God Stratagems" by him, and ends up conquering the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, becoming a peerless War God who sweeps across the cosmos. The second disciple, possessing a Chaos Sword Body, can break all techniques with a single sword, his swordsmanship unmatched throughout history. He points his sword at the heavens: "My master said, the sword and the man stand together. If the sword perishes... my master will give me another one." The third disciple, a reborn Empress who returns to her throne, her elegance and grace overshadowing all beings. And without anyone noticing, his own sect, the Qingxuan Sect, has become the number one sect on the continent. Looking at these unbelievably formidable disciples, Gu Changge, holding the "Primordial Purple Qi" he just signed in for, falls into deep thought: — Wasn't this supposed to be a peaceful retirement? How did I become the ultimate master?!
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
end. Thus one must continue to cultivate, and become a saint or great emperor, in order to prolong one's life. Chen Xia, however, completely reversed this. Since his transmigration, he has gained immortality, and also a system that awards him with attribute points for every year he lives. Thus between the myriad worlds, the legend of an unparalleled senior appeared. "A gentleman takes revenge; it is never too late even after ten thousand years." "When you were at your peak I yielded, now in your old age I shall trample on you." - Chen Xia
