Gu Yan's arrival had further heightened the excitement among the children of Hope Light.
Even when it was time to leave, the children couldn't hold back their tears, reluctant to see him go.
Luo Ya remarked that she simply couldn’t see through Gu Yan.
These children were clearly being used by him as tools for martial training.
From their usual harsh training, the children should have realized something.
But... why?
What kind of charm did this man possess to make these kids follow him so devotedly?
At the entrance of Hope Light,
Gu Yan glanced at Luo Ya, who was still trailing behind him, and couldn’t help but chuckle. "Principal Luo, you don’t need to see me off any further. Unless... you have something else to discuss?"
"Mm..."
After a moment of hesitation, Luo Ya finally met his gaze with a serious expression. "What do you consider those children to be?"
"Tools for your sinister schemes?"
Sinister schemes? How could my pure love plan be sinister?
Gu Yan sighed inwardly. Why bother asking so much? On the surface, however, he smiled faintly and nodded. "Correct."
"They’re all my tools. Satisfied, Principal Luo?"
"Train them well. They’ll be very useful to me in the future."
"Of course, the harsher the training, the better. They can handle it."
After all, the Claw Cells could heal any injury.
Luo Ya’s expression darkened. "You’re truly a despicable scumbag."
As expected, this man had ulterior motives. Those children might even become subjects for some horrifying experiments in the future.
Ignoring Luo Ya’s inner turmoil, Gu Yan seemed to remember something and turned to Old Gao. "Oh right, Old Gao, give that to our dear principal."
"Understood, Young Master."
With that, Old Gao stepped forward and handed a phone to Luo Ya.
She took it, puzzled. "What’s this?"
"Nothing much. I’m not some devil, you know. I did say I treat my own people well."
Gu Yan shrugged, and under Luo Ya’s stunned gaze, he grinned. "From now on, you can use this phone to chat with your son, Tongtong."
"I had my people buy him a smartwatch."
At this point, Gu Yan turned away and waved dismissively. "Don’t thank me. It’s just that every kid in Tongtong’s elite class has one. It’d be awkward if he didn’t fit in."
"Keep up the good work, Principal Luo. I’ll be back to inspect your progress next time."
Luo Ya stood frozen, clutching the phone tightly.
Watching Gu Yan’s retreating figure, she was momentarily lost in thought.
This was the same man who had forcefully trapped her here, yet...
Why did his act of kindness leave her feeling both incredulous and strangely warm?
What kind of twisted psychology was this?
She let out a soft sigh.
Well, so be it.
Gu Yan had given her an annual salary of ten million, enrolled her child in a prestigious school she could never have dreamed of, and secured a home in an elite district she could never have afforded.
The only price? Being confined to this place to train martial artists, stripped of her freedom.
But Gu Yan... just what are you planning?
......
Gu Yan departed.
Once back in the car, he began to seriously contemplate the matter of the Power of Night.
The loss of the emotion "anger" hadn’t caused any drastic changes in him, so he hadn’t paid much attention to it.
But!
Earlier, he had unconsciously thought, The Power of Night is truly intoxicating.
This was terrifying. If things continued, he might end up as Leng Ling'er had warned—a mere puppet controlled by the dagger.
So...
He asked inwardly, "System, is there any way to stop the Power of Night’s corruption?"
[Reporting to the host, the Power of Night is a force distinct from Pure Love Energy. It originates from a malevolent entity.]
[The relationship is complex, and given the host’s current strength, complete eradication or control is impossible.]
[However, there is another method to suppress its influence.]
"? What method?"
Gu Yan frowned.
According to Leng Ling'er, wasn’t the Power of Night—or rather, the dagger—linked to that cursed tome?
Complex relationship? Don’t tell me this damn system is also connected to that thing?
But surely not...
The system continued its explanation.
[The method is... the host can use Pure Love Energy to envelop the Power of Night, thereby suppressing it.]
[After all... Pure Love Energy can accomplish anything the host desires.]
Hearing this, Gu Yan recalled the nature of Pure Love Energy.
He had almost forgotten this setting.
Initially, he had used it to boost his cultivation and even subdue the Claw.
[Scree!~!]
Hmm... this might actually work.
With that in mind, Gu Yan channeled Pure Love Energy, wrapping it around the Power of Night.
In an instant, his mind felt clearer.
Ahh~!
What a relief. So this is the effect of Pure Love Energy?
But how can I fully master the Power of Night?
[Note: Once the host reaches the level of Grand Master, Pure Love Energy can be used to dominate and enslave the Power of Night!]
?
Grand Master.
That’s going to take ages.
Setting aside that thought for now, Gu Yan felt somewhat reassured.
He had noticed that casual use of the Power of Night didn’t affect him much.
Only when wielding the dagger...
did the corruption intensify.
The Night’s dagger truly was an evil artifact...
Just then.
Ding ling ling~!
Gu Yan’s phone buzzed—a call from Leng Ling'er.
He answered immediately.
"Brother-in-law! Brother-in-law! Come to Bai Qionglan’s place right now! Something’s happened!"
"There’s a female martial artist here!!"
Click.
The call ended abruptly.
"?"
Gu Yan slowly formed a question mark in his mind.
He quickly sensed the Claw Cells he had left near Bai Qionglan, but there was no sign of danger.
What’s going on?
Frowning, he turned to Old Gao. "Old Gao, head to the Bai residence."
"Understood, Young Master."
......
Half an hour later,
When Gu Yan arrived at the Bai household, the sight before him left him utterly speechless.
Because...
"Brother-in-law! Waaah! You’re finally here!"
"Look at this woman! She’s been following me around, insisting that I’m the Dragon King!"
Leng Ling'er, on the verge of tears, rushed over and hid behind Gu Yan.
Standing before them was a female martial artist at the early peak of the Master level.
Her eyes gleamed with excitement, fixated on Leng Ling'er as she muttered feverishly,
"The new Dragon King... I’m finally free from that old bastard’s control."
"Hahaha!!"
"Your Majesty, your strength may be weak now, but fear not! With me here, I know all the hidden opportunities that old man hoarded!"
"I'll guide you in your cultivation—you'll definitely become the strongest Dragon King in this world! Then you can slay demons and vanquish evil!!"
"Wuwuwu, this is what I was meant to do all along!!"
"Dragon King... Dragon King... Say something, Dragon King... I'm your beloved Xing Xing..."
Gu Yan took a deep breath.
He glanced at the woman before him, her eyes tinged with madness.
Then he turned to look at Leng Ling'er behind him, her eyes brimming with tears.
It seemed... he finally understood.
Oh? So we're giving Leng Ling'er a power-up already?
A Grand Master guardian just casually handing out opportunities, huh?
] [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!"
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
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)
't think I'm that capable, I'm just trying my best to stay alive. I've been kind all my life, never did anything bad, yet worldly suffering spared me not one bit. The human world is a nice place, but I won't come back in my next life. A kind young man, who wanted to just get by singing, but through repeated deceits and betrayals, has gone down an irredeemable path.
