Three hours later, deep into the night.
The Leng Family residence.
On a soft bed.
After absorbing Gu Yan's energy, Leng Qingqiu cheerfully hugged her phone, kicking her legs playfully on the bed.
The phone was playing an audiobook about romance.
"Hehe (。-ω-)~~"
"[......]"
"Hey, Xiao Leng, this plot is so interesting."
"[......?]"
"Giggle~~"
"[.....]"
After a prolonged silence.
Xiao Leng spoke slowly—
[Other me... have you really forgiven Gu Yan just like that?]
However, Leng Qingqiu acted as if she hadn’t heard, kicking her legs while lying on her stomach and saying, "Xiao Leng, listen—the female lead and the second female lead are fighting. It feels like..."
[Other me.]
Xiao Leng’s tone grew slightly firmer.
[Are you planning to keep wallowing like this?]
The laughter stopped abruptly.
"........."
Leng Qingqiu seemed to have been struck by something. She clenched her phone tightly as the AI voice from the device gradually softened.
The room fell into complete silence.
One minute, two minutes, three minutes passed.
Leng Qingqiu finally spoke, her voice trembling slightly, "Then tell me... what else can I do?"
"It was Gu Yan who took my dagger."
"I can’t bring myself to kill him to regain my power."
"Other than this... what else is left for me?"
She buried her face in the pillow, her voice filled with confusion and struggle. "I like Gu Yan... I could never kill him and take his heart’s blood."
"As long as he doesn’t leave me... as long as things stay like this..."
"I’m... I’m content."
"Xiao Leng... before, my only family was Ling'er. Now, Gu Yan is my second family. He gave me a sense of home. I don’t want him to leave."
"I don’t want to ruin this peaceful life we have now."
"[......]"
Xiao Leng fell silent.
The other her hadn’t moved on from the past—she was just pretending everything was fine.
Was it... because she was afraid her cauldron would abandon her?
Sigh.
Xiao Leng’s mood also grew complicated.
[In that case, I’ll take over the organization in your stead.]
"Huh?"
Leng Qingqiu froze.
[If they find out you’ve lost your power, do you think they’ll remain loyal?]
[We need to prepare for the worst.]
[Even if you don’t care about yourself, at least think about our sister’s safety.]
Hearing this.
Leng Qingqiu went silent.
Xiao Leng had voiced the very concern weighing on her mind.
Shangguan Miaoyin and the others had been communicating with her telepathically.
Clearly, they hadn’t been swayed by Gu Yan yet.
And the traitor, Mei Xue, hadn’t revealed her loss of power either.
But that only raised more questions.
Still.
"Xiao Leng, aren’t we one and the same?"
Leng Qingqiu didn’t understand—if she had lost her power, how could Xiao Leng regain it just by taking over?
[We are one, but I’m stronger than you.]
"......"
"Then what do you plan to do?"
Leng Qingqiu choked back a retort but couldn’t argue.
At least for now, Xiao Leng seemed more reliable than her.
[It’s simple. You only lost the Power of Night, but your perception remains intact.]
[Your sensory abilities are among the most extensive and powerful in the world. With this talent, the Martial Arts Department would easily make an exception to recruit you.]
[Since you can’t bring yourself to kill your cauldron to regain power... then you should train within the department.]
"Me... join the Martial Arts Department?"
Leng Qingqiu was stunned.
Was that even appropriate?
Her former identity was the Night King...
[Yes. During the day, you’ll act freely.]
[At night, you’ll hand your body over to me. I’ll make appearances before the organization’s members.]
[You can think about it.]
[Rather than rotting away in stagnation, you should train within the system and become stronger.]
[Otherwise... the gap between you and your cauldron will only grow wider.]
As Xiao Leng spoke, she sighed inwardly.
In truth.
This was also part of Gu Yan’s plan.
Step one.
Broadcast the Gu Family’s annual gathering.
Reintroduce Leng Qingqiu to the public eye, making sure everyone saw her as Gu Yan’s beloved.
This would plant the idea in people’s minds that Leng Qingqiu was just an ordinary woman.
Step two.
Leng Qingqiu joins the Martial Arts Department, aligning herself with justice.
With her innate talent, she would quickly rise to become a pillar of the department.
Her influence would be undeniable.
Step three.
The most crucial step.
Gu Yan...
Planned to reveal the world of martial artists to everyone.
As for step four...
That would depend on how things unfolded.
Sensing the other her’s inner turmoil.
Xiao Leng’s mind drifted back to Gu Yan’s face earlier.
The dagger’s corruption was spreading faster than expected.
She needed to warn him tonight.
....
.....
Meanwhile.
The Gu Family residence.
"Hehe (。-ω-)~~"
Having absorbed Qingqiu’s energy, Gu Yan swayed happily as he returned home.
After freshening up, he collapsed onto his bed.
Plans were exhausting.
Nothing beat spending time with his wife.
But he couldn’t afford to slack off—once he relaxed, he’d lose all motivation to scheme.
So he had to hold back. Stay disciplined.
Just then.
Old Gao called. "Young Master, Ms. Luo has moved into her new residence."
"She’s very grateful you bought her a home in a school district."
"If possible, she’d like to meet you in person tomorrow at Hope Light."
Gu Yan nodded. "Got it. Thanks, Old Gao."
"Understood, Young Master. There’s one more important matter."
Old Gao’s voice grew heavy. "The bodyguards we assigned to Bai Qionglan have been wiped out."
"Dead?"
"No, knocked unconscious by a martial artist’s pressure."
Gu Yan relaxed slightly but frowned. "What happened?"
"It occurred this morning. Bai Qionglan was attacked by an unknown martial artist on her way to school."
"The assailant was a woman, but strangely, she didn’t harm Bai Qionglan. She just lingered for a moment before leaving."
"Bai Qionglan is currently receiving treatment at Jianghai Hospital."
??
Bai Qionglan... attacked?
Gu Yan was baffled.
Old Gao continued, "Additionally, the surveillance team assigned to Ning Qian has also been wiped out."
"They were knocked out by the shockwaves of a martial arts battle."
"Ning Qian was taken away by a man."
"I reviewed the street cameras—the martial artists were a man and a woman."
"Both appeared in Jianghai simultaneously, acting with clear coordination."
"They were clearly targeting something. Going after Ning Qian, a disciple of Dragon King Mountain, makes sense. But attacking Bai Qionglan only to let her go..."
"That part is unclear."
Old Gao’s voice was grave. Anyone who could overpower Ning Qian—a martial artist of her caliber—had to be at least grandmaster-level.
But...
The attacker didn’t seem intent on killing her—almost as if their goal was to keep her alive.
They assaulted Bai Qionglan but ultimately let her go.
As for Ning Qian, she was taken away...
Hearing this, a look of realization gradually dawned in Gu Yan’s eyes.
He already understood the situation.
“Got it. I’ll go to the hospital tomorrow.”
“Understood, Young Master.”
The call ended.
Gu Yan sorted through his thoughts.
These two assailants were most likely operatives from the Dragon King Palace, sent by the Old Dragon King.
Their motive for targeting Bai Qionglan was simple—she possessed half of the Dragon King Jade.
But unfortunately for them, the complete piece was already in his possession.
As for why they spared Bai Qionglan in the end, it was probably because the Old Dragon King’s subordinates hadn’t received instructions on what to do if she didn’t have the jade.
And Ning Qian...
A faint smirk curled at the corner of Gu Yan’s lips.
His eyes glinted with mockery. It seemed...
The Old Dragon King’s body was on the verge of collapse.
That’s why he sought to possess Ning Qian, wasn’t it?
Well, perfect timing.
The possession ritual would still require some time.
The moment the ceremony reached its most critical stage would also be when the Old Dragon King was at his weakest.
And that—would be Gu Yan’s best opportunity to strike!
With the Old Dragon King dead, the second greatest threat to him would be eliminated.
Just then.
The temperature around him plummeted.
Xiao Leng’s icy voice reached Gu Yan’s ears: “You’ve already used the dagger?”
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…
【Prologue: The Beginning of It All – Use holy water to heal the saintess tainted by demonic energy, then converse with her.】 Shen Nian stared at his older sister sipping yogurt, lost in thought. So you’re telling me my sister is the saintess, and yogurt is the holy water? 【Main Quest 1: Brave Youth, Become an Adventurer! Reward: Rookie Adventurer Title.】 【Side Quest 1: Find the Adorable Kitty! Reward: 1000 Gold Coins.】 Shen Nian: "Wait, I’m a high school senior here—did some guy who got isekai’d accidentally bind his system to me?" Hold on, completing quests gives gold rewards? Titles even boost stats? Is this for real? (A lighthearted, absurd campus comedy—not a revenge power fantasy.)
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.”
