Black Street.
This was a lawless zone within the Eastern Nation, rife with violent crime and chaos.
The time was already 2:30 AM.
The dim, flickering streetlights cast patchy shadows on the cracked pavement, occasionally interrupted by the roar of speeding motorcycles shattering the night's silence.
The graffiti-covered walls at the street corner seemed like screams in the darkness, narrating the desolation and disorder of Black Street.
The air was thick with the stench of alcohol and tobacco, mixed with the faint, unsettling scent of narcotics. Beneath the neon lights, shadowy figures lurked, each seemingly concealing their own secrets.
Inside a dimly lit alleyway.
BANG!!
BANG!!
BANG!!
THUD!!
A boy, no older than 12 or 13, stomped his foot on the head of a grown man who had already been knocked unconscious.
In front of him, he held up another man—a hulking brute whose size far surpassed his own—by the collar.
One brutal punch after another left the man's face unrecognizable.
BANG!
With a dismissive flick, he tossed the group of perverts who had been drawn to him onto the ground like trash.
Splatters of blood stained his face, yet he simply closed his eyes and tilted his head slightly upward.
Under the moonlight, it was clear—the boy wore an expression of pure satisfaction.
"Ha......"
"That felt good."
After a long pause, he let out a soft chuckle.
He pulled out a pair of black-framed glasses from his pocket and put them on.
In an instant, his previously violent demeanor vanished, replaced by a gentle, unassuming aura.
"Young Master, it's time to return."
"The Leng Family's annual gathering is soon, and there are still many preparations to be made early this morning."
At that moment,
A nervous voice called out from the corner of the alley.
The boy was named Gu Linyi, younger brother to Gu Yan. Compared to Gu Yan’s sisters,
He was considered the least remarkable in the family.
Yet... he was the one who knew best how to please the Old Madam and Old Master Gu.
Following the voice, Gu Linyi glanced over. When he saw his bodyguard, Qiu Feng, cowering fearfully beside a trash can,
He adjusted his glasses and mused, "The annual gathering... I wonder how my dear brother will fare this year."
"If I recall correctly..."
As if struck by a thought,
Gu Linyi covered his mouth and let out a stifled laugh.
His voice dripped with mockery as he sneered, "This is his last chance, isn’t it?"
"Pfft—hahaha... How laughable. What makes a loser like him think he can compete with my other brothers and sisters for the position of family head?"
"Didn’t I hear he couldn’t even win over a woman?"
The bodyguard, Qiu Feng, was a woman in her thirties. She scrambled to her feet.
She was long accustomed to the young master’s dual personalities.
Hesitating for a moment, she forced a smile and replied, "Yes, this year is Gu Yan’s final opportunity. Barring any surprises, he’ll likely be stripped of his heir status."
"However... Rumor has it that Gu Yan and Shen Wan'er have already fallen out."
At this,
"Oh?"
"Wasn’t he the type to swear he’d marry no one but Shen Wan'er?"
Gu Linyi arched a brow in mild surprise. He crossed his arms, his voice rising slightly as the heel of his boot unconsciously twisted against the head of one of the Black Street thugs.
"Yes, but apparently, Gu Yan has found his true love now."
Qiu Feng’s eyes sparkled as she spoke, "According to my fellow bodyguard in Jianghai, Gu Yan’s true love is none other than the Leng Family’s eldest daughter, Leng Qingqiu!"
"They moved frighteningly fast—confirmed their relationship in a flash! And at a banquet, Gu Yan even beat up several prominent figures from Jianghai’s elite families just to defend her!"
"Rumor has it they’ve even been together long enough to have a child already!"
"Ah... When will I ever find true love like that?"
Hearing this, Gu Linyi’s smirk faded slightly.
His expression turned blank as he stared at Qiu Feng, who was still lost in her romantic fantasies. "Let’s go."
"Huh? Oh—right!"
Qiu Feng quickly pressed her hand against the alley wall.
The next second—
BANG!
A wooden door materialized out of thin air.
Without hesitation, she pushed it open, revealing a bedroom on the other side.
Gu Linyi stepped through without another word.
"What’s gotten into the young master?"
Qiu Feng frowned in confusion but followed anyway.
Well, his mood swings were nothing new. She was used to it by now.
Still, the annual gathering... Just thinking about it made her nervous.
But the young master would be fine. After all, he was the favorite.
......
......
3:00 AM.
On the couch.
The TV played softly in the background.
Leng Ling'er nibbled on a cream puff, her eyes glued to the melodramatic romance drama unfolding on screen.
Gu Yan, seated on the adjacent sofa, stifled a yawn and asked, "Hey, Ling'er, how did you explain to Qingqiu that you were able to come out?"
"What was her reaction?"
Leng Ling'er finished her sweet treat before replying, eyes still fixed on the TV, "Big reaction. Thought I’d done something to you."
"Oh."
Gu Yan grinned. That sounded exactly like the Qingqiu he knew.
Hearing his chuckle, Leng Ling'er shot him a glance before adding, "Then I told her you didn’t realize it wasn’t her anymore, so you kissed me again."
"That’s why she’ll tell you she has a second personality later. It all stems from that."
".........?!?"
Gu Yan’s smile froze.
Huh?!
But almost immediately,
Leng Ling'er turned her head, a faint smirk playing on her lips, her eyes gleaming with mischief. "Just kidding."
"......"
"You little..."
Gu Yan’s eye twitched. He didn’t even know what to say anymore.
This personality...
Was downright malicious!
"Don’t worry, though."
"The other me used the Night King’s power to reinforce my barriers."
"She thinks I can’t come out anymore."
Leng Ling'er turned back to the TV, her tone casual.
Hearing this, Gu Yan exhaled in relief.
Leng Ling'er might have a nasty personality, but she was reliable when it came to getting things done.
Though...
If she could still appear now, didn’t that mean Qingqiu’s methods were useless against her?
"Alright, you’ve got this, Cold Sis."
"Keep watching. I’m gonna take a quick nap—wake me when you’re done."
Gu Yan closed his eyes, exhaustion weighing him down.
So tired... I feel so weak...
That same drained feeling from the first time he met Leng Ling'er was back.
Leng Ling'er gave an absentminded nod, already engrossed in the drama again.
Time passed silently.
Before long,
Leng Ling'er finished the last of her cream puffs. When she reached for another,
She realized the plate was empty.
Her brow furrowed briefly before smoothing out. "Puppet, I’m done."
"Pup—"
She turned, only to find Gu Yan sprawled on the sofa, fast asleep.
Her expression softened.
"Asleep, huh..."
"But it's true."
Leng Qingqiu murmured to herself, after all, she had secretly been absorbing Gu Yan's essence again.
With that thought, she turned off the TV and stood up.
Slowly, she walked over to Gu Yan's side.
Under the moonlight, she could clearly see the faint exhaustion on his face.
A furnace... he had put in so much effort for the sake of another version of herself.
Bearing too much alone would eventually become unbearable.
But none of that was her concern. If this was the path the furnace had chosen...
Then... as long as he didn't regret it in the end, that was enough.
Leng Qingqiu reached out and gently caressed Gu Yan's face.
As she gazed at him, strange memories she couldn't explain resurfaced in her mind.
"The first time... I killed the furnace..."
"The second time... the furnace turned into a monster..."
"What are these bizarre memories?"
She whispered, her eyes flickering with uncertainty.
Was there some connection here?
Did it involve her? Or... the other version of herself?
She shook her head, dismissing the thoughts.
After quietly watching Gu Yan for a few more seconds,
a sudden idea struck her.
A faint smirk curled her lips as her suggestive voice drifted softly through the living room:
"Other me... this time, you’d better thank me properly."
In Leng Ling'er's room.
Leng Ling'er tossed and turned, her expression twisted as if trapped in a nightmare.
"Brother-in-law... and that other sister did what you never did..."
"I... I definitely wasn’t involved..."
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
shall grant"] ["Inscribing the glory of our race upon tombstones"] ["All that is threatened, I shall protect"] How his younger sister sees her brother: A brother who only makes eye contact once a day, mostly fading into the background as he tinkers with who-knows-what in his room all day. Their life paths should have remained largely separate. Until one day. Su Qi created an equipment card for his never-met "online girlfriend." His sister fell into silent contemplation upon receiving the "white stockings." [Card can be upgraded] [Upgrade by fulfilling any of the following conditions] [Condition ①: Consume one hundred higher-tier cards] [Condition ②: Complete one 'Heart-Pounding Adventure'] What constitutes a Heart-Pounding Adventure? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Beginner Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to admire it.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Easy Level): Equip the card, invite 'Su Qi' to touch it, and analyze the equipment's texture.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Entry Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to...] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Challenge Level): Freely combine the words 'Brother' 'Out' 'Brother' 'Me' 'Please' into a complete sentence...] "Please help me analyze both teams' mistakes in this match, brother..." His sister exhaled in relief—surely... surely there couldn't be anything more difficult? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Suicide Mission Level): Sneak a peek at the names of the galgames in 'Su Qi's' hidden E-drive folder]
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
ts me of treason?" "Correct. The host must return to the capital and gradually build up influence." "Wait—I have half a million soldiers, and you want me to go back to the capital to 'build influence'?" "Host, you are currently the Northern Garrison General, loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty." "Of course I am loyal to Great Xia! Absolutely loyal!" "But you keep referring to yourself as 'We'..." "Never mind the details! Summon all the regional commanders and military officers! We suspect treacherous officials are manipulating the court! They shall march with Us to the capital and purge the corrupt!" "......"
