In the dimly lit forest,
The gathered martial artists were stunned.
Seriously? Other zones at least had challenges that could be cleared.
Why were they being forced to kill each other here?
"This is a joke. We came here to find the Primordial Qi."
"We have no interest in this slaughterhouse game."
"Exactly. My vote is we stay put and wait for the other zones to clear the challenge."
"Good plan. The rules never said we had to kill each other."
The martial artists argued among themselves. In their world, they crossed paths often—some as allies, others as rivals.
And now, here they were, united in the search for the Primordial Qi. Given how dangerous this forbidden land was, turning on each other was the last thing they’d do.
Mei Xue watched as the group settled on their decision to wait it out.
Hum.
A dark blade slowly materialized in her hand.
"Hey, you’re from the department, right?"
"What do you think? We’ve all agreed to wait peacefully until the other zones clear the game."
"That way, we get through this without casualties."
A man approached, smiling as he greeted Mei Xue and You Xingxue.
Perhaps because they wore the department’s signature black combat gear, he didn’t see them as a threat.
But—
Mei Xue showed no reaction to his words.
Her eyes glinted coldly as she spoke flatly, "Sorry."
The moment the word left her lips—
Shing!!
Her right hand, gripping the dark blade, flashed upward.
Schlick!
"Wha—?!"
Splatter!!
With a single clean stroke, the man who had spoken was split diagonally from hip to shoulder. Blood gushed like a fountain, painting the surroundings crimson.
His bisected corpse collapsed in two halves, his face frozen in shock.
Mei Xue flicked the blood off her blade and lifted her gaze to the horrified onlookers.
"Sorry," she said calmly. "You all have to die."
"!!!"
"Mo Cang!!!"
A woman snapped out of her daze, staring in terror at the mutilated corpse on the ground.
She screamed, her voice breaking.
Why? How?
Why was a department martial artist killing them?
"She’s insane! This woman’s lost her mind!"
"You’ve got to be kidding! Is the Martial Department declaring war on our sects?!"
"Damn it! ‘You all have to die’? I’ll kill you first and take your head to your superiors!"
A man roared, swinging a massive blade toward Mei Xue. The weapon unleashed a violent gale as it descended.
"Gale Slash!!"
Boom!
The blade came crashing down—
But Mei Xue didn’t flinch. She simply flicked her wrist.
Hum. Schlick! Schlick!
"Ghk—?!"
In an instant, countless black tendrils erupted from the ground, impaling the charging man.
Simultaneously—
Swish!!
A blade gleamed.
Mei Xue blurred forward like a phantom, her weapon slicing cleanly through his neck.
Thud.
The tendrils dissolved, and the man’s body crumpled lifelessly.
"Not coming?" Mei Xue scanned the crowd indifferently.
Only now did everyone realize—she wasn’t joking.
She genuinely intended to slaughter them all.
"Damn it! Everyone, attack!"
"Kill them both! They started this!"
"If they’re the ones breaking the peace, we’ve got nothing to feel guilty about!"
"Go!"
With a few leading the charge, the entire group surged toward Mei Xue and You Xingxue.
Meanwhile, You Xingxue—
Trembling, she hid behind a large tree, peeking out fearfully.
"Eep... Why is this happening...?"
"I’m so scared. Why does everyone have to fight...?"
Just then, several martial artists spotted her cowering form. Their eyes burned with fury.
"There’s the other one! Get her!"
Four or five rushed toward You Xingxue.
She shrank back, her voice quivering. "N-no... I didn’t do anything... I didn’t kill anyone..."
"Eek!"
She turned to flee—only to trip over a small rock.
"Oww..."
Clutching her knee, she looked up in terror as the attackers closed in.
"Are you kidding me? She tripped on a rock?"
"Pfft—hahaha! No wonder the Martial Department’s full of desk jockeys!"
"Let’s kill them and squeeze some compensation out of their superiors!"
"Now!"
Amid their mocking laughter, weapons were raised, poised to strike.
"Like this! Die, bitch!"
You Xingxue squeezed her eyes shut, throwing up her arms instinctively.
"Stop!!"
The next moment—
Splat!!
The voices cut off abruptly.
All she heard was the wet crunch of bursting flesh.
Then warmth—sticky and thick—coated her hands.
"Huh?"
Trembling, she cracked her eyes open.
And froze.
"Wh... where’d they go?"
Her gaze darted around the empty space before her. Then—
She saw it.
Puddles of mangled flesh and blood.
"Did... I do this?"
She stared at her bloodied hands, then back at the gory mess.
Thump. Thump.
Her heart began pounding erratically.
Breathing unevenly, a flush crept across her cheeks.
She clutched her chest.
She should be terrified.
So why...?
Why did she feel... so exhilarated?
"Tch—what the hell is wrong with her?!"
"Yo, no way. She wiped them out in one move?"
"What kind of ability was that?"
"A black vortex?"
"A spatial-type technique? You’re telling me we’ve got a prodigy like that here?!"
Those who witnessed the massacre paled, their faces drained of color.
What even were these unheard-of powers?!
"Eyes on me."
The next second—
"Gah—!"
Blade light flashed.
Mei Xue’s dark weapon carved through the stunned onlookers, ending their lives in an instant.
Shing!
She landed smoothly, casting a sidelong glance at You Xingxue—now trembling behind the tree, her expression twisting with excitement.
Mei Xue sighed inwardly.
What terrifying talent. So this is her true nature...
Mastering any technique at a glance, adapting it seamlessly to her own rhythm.
Tch. No wonder she took my place.
Her grip tightened on the dark blade.
But none of it mattered anymore.
She was Gu Yan’s now.
In just ten minutes, the forest floor was littered with corpses—martial artists from various sects, all slain.
"Alright. Now there’s only you left."
"The one from the Azure Wave Sect..."
"...who uses Mirror Water."
Mei Xue gazed at a woman clad in a water-blue robe, her expression brimming with despair.
This was someone Gu Yan had specifically instructed to keep alive.
The Water Mirror...
What could Gu Yan possibly want with it...
] [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!"
tions: attribute allocation, analysis, proficiency, and simulation. Specializing in mechanical alchemy, from crafting sorcerous battle armor to handcrafting mechanical maidens, his mechanical legion conquers endless realms... Relying on his wits, he begins with a student-teacher romance, wins over a female director, enslaves a female assassin and a underworld queen, becoming the husband of a Grand Duchess... He enslaves the Goddess of Magic from the divine realm, developing his power simultaneously in both the Wizard World and the Realm of Gods...
world slacker. But a genius female disciple just had to get clingy, insisting that he take her as a disciple. Not only that, she was always making advances on him, thoroughly disrupting his peaceful slacker life...
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)
