Lin Qingyan finally understood everything.
The reason Luo Zhao called Gu Chengyin “Master” was not because they were playing some kind of perverse game.
Nor was it a master-and-slave relationship in the literal sense. It was more like a religious belief.
More precisely, Gu Chengyin had become Luo Zhao’s emotional anchor.
Like a person walking through the darkness who catches sight of a lamp. Like someone adrift on the vast sea who manages to grab hold of a piece of driftwood.
Like the most lost of believers, finally shown the road ahead by a god.
As long as Gu Chengyin was there, Luo Zhao’s mental illness would not develop into a true inner demon.
Because Gu Chengyin was her anchor, an unshakable presence.
So rather than a master and a slave, they were more like a god and a believer.
When Lin Qingyan thought of this, complicated emotions suddenly welled up inside her.
It was not jealousy, but empathy—and the heartache that came with it.
Because she understood that feeling all too well.
The despair of being shrouded by a tremendous shadow, unable to break free no matter how hard one tried.
Then, at the most helpless moment, feeling a beam of light suddenly shine into one’s life.
So in truth, she and Luo Zhao were the same.
Both had wandered alone along long, dark roads until they encountered Gu Chengyin.
Lin Qingyan leaned against Gu Chengyin’s chest, feeling the warmth of his body and the rhythm of his heartbeat.
His heart beat beside her ear, once, then again, like some ancient and steady timepiece.
Measuring the passage of time, and also measuring the fluctuations of the emotions deep within her heart.
For the time being, there was no need to worry about Luo Zhao’s safety. This conclusion allowed Lin Qingyan to breathe a sigh of relief.
It was as though a great stone had been lifted from her heart, making it much easier to breathe.
She believed that as long as Gu Chengyin was there, nothing would happen to Luo Zhao.
There was nothing in this world more reliable than Gu Chengyin. Lin Qingyan knew that better than anyone.
And yet, her brows still furrowed unconsciously.
Although she was no longer worried, she still felt that something was wrong...
It was like looking at a beautiful painting. You knew it was excellent, knew that every stroke and every line was flawless.
Yet you could not shake the feeling that something was off, that something had been hidden somewhere—something you had failed to notice.
The thought left Lin Qingyan deeply uneasy.
There was nothing strange about Luo Zhao making Gu Chengyin her emotional anchor.
Because Lin Qingyan could empathize with her, she understood it perfectly.
So if Luo Zhao merely needed an emotional anchor, even if that person was Gu Chengyin, Lin Qingyan would not object.
Not only would she not object, she would support it with all her heart.
But...
That title, “Master,” always made her imagine all sorts of strange scenes.
Lin Qingyan’s brows knitted together even more tightly as certain images came to mind.
Luo Zhao kneeling before Gu Chengyin, lowering her head obediently, her lips parting as she uttered those two words.
Gu Chengyin looking down at Luo Zhao from above, reaching out to lift her chin.
But the look in Luo Zhao’s eyes was not one of devotion. It was...
Ambition.
No.
Lin Qingyan shook her head inwardly.
It might not necessarily be ambition. Perhaps it was something else.
In any case, she simply felt that something was wrong.
She felt that Luo Zhao calling Gu Chengyin “Master” was not as simple as it appeared on the surface.
This was not Lin Qingyan overthinking things, nor was it jealousy or possessiveness at work.
It was because she understood Luo Zhao too well.
The Crown Prince had never been some innocent and harmless little white rabbit.
Her unusual upbringing and the absence of love were the root of Luo Zhao’s mental illness.
They were also what made her so unusual deep down.
Every step she took had a purpose. Every action concealed a calculation. Every sentence carried a hidden meaning.
And as her experience and knowledge continued to grow, Luo Zhao’s talent was also beginning to reveal itself bit by bit.
Setting aside everything else, the mere fact that she had concealed her cultivation to the point that everyone overlooked it was already something the Luo Zhao of the past could never have accomplished.
Therefore, there had to be more behind her calling Gu Chengyin “Master” than a mere emotional anchor.
Lin Qingyan’s gaze settled on a certain point in the air, as though she were looking at something only she could see.
Or perhaps she was looking at nothing at all, merely sorting through the tangled thoughts in her mind.
What did Luo Zhao want?
She already had everything.
The status of Crown Prince, the throne that awaited her, noble and unquestioned legitimacy, endless power.
Luo Zhao lacked none of these things, and they had never been what she truly wanted.
There was only one thing she truly desired yet could never obtain.
Gu Chengyin.
Luo Zhao wanted Gu Chengyin.
Lin Qingyan had known that for a long time.
Precisely because she knew, she had constantly flirted with Gu Chengyin in front of Luo Zhao, openly declared her sovereignty, and shamelessly flaunted their affection.
It was not because she lacked confidence. It was because she wanted Luo Zhao to understand.
This man is mine. I am the rightful wife, while you can only be the lesser one.
But now, Lin Qingyan suddenly realized that Luo Zhao might want more than just Gu Chengyin.
She might want him all to herself.
Perhaps something even more frightening than that.
Though the very thought of possessing someone exclusively was already frightening enough.
Gu Chengyin was not an object. No one could possess him exclusively, and no one should.
He had his own choices, his own freedom, and the people and things he wished to protect.
That was something Lin Qingyan had only come to understand later, which was why she had given up on trying to possess him completely.
But Luo Zhao had not.
If Luo Zhao had truly developed the desire to keep Gu Chengyin all to herself, then she meant to take him away from everyone.
Away from Lin Qingyan, away from Shangguan Yunying, away from countless others.
She wanted Gu Chengyin’s world to contain no one but Luo Zhao.
She wanted his eyes to see no one but Luo Zhao.
That was no longer a normal form of affection. It was pathological.
As for what could be even more frightening than total possession...
Lin Qingyan narrowed her eyes slightly, her brows drawing together more tightly.
She could not imagine what could be worse than that. Nothing came to mind.
She ran through every possibility she could think of.
What if Luo Zhao locked Gu Chengyin away?
What if she used schemes to blackmail or coerce him?
What if she used some unorthodox method to control him?
No. None of that was possible.
With Luo Zhao’s cultivation and strength, she could not accomplish any of those things.
Even if she were given a hundred years—or a thousand—she still would not be able to do it.
Because Lin Qingyan would never stand by and watch.
She would never allow Gu Chengyin to suffer any harm.
And yet, her instincts told her otherwise.
Luo Zhao’s ultimate intentions were definitely not simple. Her current silence and restraint were nothing more than patience and concealment.
That was the true reason Lin Qingyan could never let down her guard around Luo Zhao.
She could grow close to Shangguan Yunying because Shangguan Yunying was safe, and because she knew how to put the greater good first.
Although she appeared gentle and dignified on the surface, she was actually deeply repressed at heart.
But that repression would only erupt under specific circumstances, with specific people, in specific situations.
] [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!"
villain is the number one simp for the book's leading female protagonist, Shen Wan'er. As expected, he later becomes a tool for the main character to show off and slap faces, ultimately meeting a tragic end with his family ruined and his life in shambles. Fortunately, he awakens the [Universal Pure Love System], which allows him to earn points by performing acts of pure love. To change his fate, Gu Yan makes a decisive choice to seek warmth and companionship with the book's biggest villain—Cold Qingqiu. ........... My name is Leng Qingqiu. To find the murderer who killed my parents years ago, I deliberately blinded myself so that everyone would lower their guard around me. Just as I was secretly accumulating power and capital according to my initial plan, a man walked into my world. "Lengleng, Qingqing, Qiuqiu, which nickname do you prefer?" I don't like any of them. You'd better leave quickly! "Why aren't you saying anything? How about I call you my baby wife?" Leng Qingqiu thinks to herself, this man is truly annoying! (Stubborn pure love warrior + single female lead + true pure love + 1v1)
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.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
