Nine o'clock.
"Haah~"
Gu Yan walked downstairs, full of energy.
He rubbed his shoulders—what a comfortable sleep.
And there was a familiar scent lingering on him, as if the Qingqiu from his dreams had somehow seeped into reality.
But that was impossible, of course.
Still, he ought to thank Xiao Leng. She must have been the one who carried him back to his room last night.
Just then.
A familiar voice came from the living room: "Awake? Ling'er's already left for school."
"Breakfast is ready. Help yourself."
Gu Yan turned toward the sound and saw Leng Qingqiu sitting calmly on the sofa, the morning news playing on the TV.
"Morning, Qingqiu."
"You're as stunning as ever today!"
He greeted her cheerfully.
Qingqiu was Qingqiu, already in full businesswoman mode this early in the morning.
As for breakfast? Nah, he wasn’t a breakfast person.
With that, he headed into the bathroom to freshen up.
"......"
Leng Qingqiu glanced sideways at the living energy source that had just disappeared into the bathroom.
Then...
She immediately covered her face, her cheeks flushing slightly.
Ugh... this is so embarrassing. No matter how she thought about it, it was mortifying.
She’d actually slept with Gu Yan last night.
But...
Leng Qingqiu frowned. Even though she’d made him think it was just a dream in the end...
Why was Gu Yan acting so nonchalant about it?
Shouldn’t he at least explain why he ended up in her bed last night?
Unless...
He had a sleepwalking habit?
Leng Qingqiu couldn’t figure it out, and she didn’t want to dwell on it.
Him not bringing it up was fine—it saved her the awkwardness.
A moment later.
Gu Yan returned to the living room and plopped down right next to Leng Qingqiu, leaning into her. "Qingqiu, my Qingqiu~"
"The weather’s so nice today. How about we go out and have some fun?"
Leng Qingqiu pressed a hand against his face and pushed him away, inwardly sighing.
This damn man. He really had forgotten everything from last night.
"No."
She huffed lightly. Why was she the only one overthinking this? So annoying!
Not that she didn’t want to go, but she really did have things to do.
With the forbidden zone expedition over, she needed to make an appearance at the organization, hear the debrief, and plan her next steps.
"Rejecting me so fast?"
"Qingqiu, don’t you want to go eat something delicious?"
Delicious food...
At his words, Leng Qingqiu shot him a sidelong glance.
As tempting as it was...
Between last night, this morning, and the Night Organization’s affairs, she felt like she’d been slacking off too much lately. She needed to focus on serious matters!
So.
"No means no. I’m busy today."
"Besides..."
She crossed her arms and smirked. "Shouldn’t you be a wounded man resting at home right now?"
"Parading around outside—do you even want to keep playing the weakling anymore?"
"Though..."
Her smirk widened. "For a Xiantian, you’re pretty weak."
Gu Yan: !!!?
"You know about that too?!"
He was shocked. Sure, being Xiantian was true, but Xiantian wasn’t weak!
He was still a Xiantian, damn it!
"Yep. Your mom called me this morning and explained your situation."
Leng Qingqiu waved her phone with a grin. "Ling'er helped set it up."
Gu Yan sighed internally.
Now that he thought about it, it made sense.
This forbidden zone trip had been even more dangerous. No matter how tough he was, he shouldn’t be bouncing around the next day like nothing happened.
Plus...
Qingqiu probably had organization matters to handle. She really didn’t have time to idle around with him.
Resigned, Gu Yan let it go.
He also needed to make an appearance at his own organization and check on things there.
Noticing his disappointment, Leng Qingqiu’s heart softened.
After a brief hesitation, she added, "It’s not like I’ll be busy forever..."
Her voice dropped slightly. "You can come find me this weekend. I’ll be free."
The moment she said it—
"!!"
"Qingqiu! I knew you loved me the most!"
"Come here, give me a kiss!"
"...Get lost!"
......
Boom!
As Gu Yan’s car drove away, Leng Qingqiu’s heart suddenly felt hollow.
[The furnace is gone.]
Xiao Leng’s voice echoed in her mind.
"I know."
Leng Qingqiu withdrew her gaze and turned back inside.
In an instant, her demeanor shifted—cold and detached.
She raised her hand, and a dagger materialized in her grip.
Staring at the gradually calming blade, she murmured, "It’s getting harder to control this dagger lately..."
"Does this mean..."
A thought crossed her mind, filling her with turmoil.
If it really was what she suspected...
Gu Yan... what should I do?
Revenge... is the path I’m supposed to walk.
With a quiet sigh, she dismissed the dagger and walked toward the dining table.
Only to—
Discover that the food on the table hadn’t been touched at all.
"Gu Yan—!!"
Leng Qingqiu gritted her teeth, seething.
Her fists clenched. No wonder he bolted so fast.
This bastard! He just hates my cooking, doesn’t he?!
Ugh! And I even went out of my way to make it!
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
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)
ose... to cooperate with the protagonist! Shen Yuan: I have a system! Protagonist: What? System: Holy crap, you're just spilling it out like that? Shen Yuan: Let's team up, we'll split the system rewards! Protagonist: Fifty-fifty split? Shen Yuan: No way! Protagonist: What!? I'm the one getting beaten up, and I don't get half? Shen Yuan: Forty-sixty split, I get forty, you get sixty! Protagonist: Deal! Big brother, come on, hit me! As long as it doesn't kill me, beat me like you mean it! Shen Yuan: Don't worry... I will definitely protect all of you! No one but me can lay a finger on you! Guard our Heaven's Chosen Ones! I'm the only one allowed to bully them!
] [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!"
