No! Absolutely cannot let this guy find it, or else my lifelong reputation will be ruined...
Click—
At that moment, a crisp sound of some mechanism activating suddenly echoed through the hall.
The expression on the King of Secret Source’s face froze instantly.
"What was that sound just now?" Elina widened her eyes, immediately gripping her staff with heightened alertness.
The other girls quickly gathered together, looking around in both caution and astonishment.
Lynn’s lips curled into a smirk.
[It’s nothing…]
[I just accidentally discovered a strange Secret Source mechanism somewhere, so I activated it.]
[Hehe—King of Secret Source, I didn’t expect you to hide something so deep! If I hadn’t investigated carefully, I wouldn’t have found this mechanism!]
And in the next moment.
Under Nanako’s stunned gaze.
Click, click, click—
Not far from the hall, a part of the marble wall suddenly protruded and then slowly split open, revealing a long downward passageway.
“There’s a path below?!” Elina and the others were utterly bewildered.
Lynn pondered, “Although I don’t know what’s going on… should we go down and take a look?”
In an instant.
The King of Secret Source’s body blocked the entrance to the passageway, his eyes wide and arms spread out as he shouted:
“Wait!!”
The girls were dumbfounded.
Lynn’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “What’s wrong, Mr. Rein?”
The King of Secret Source was drenched in sweat. “I think this place is really strange. Why would this hidden door suddenly open just as we arrived? There must be something fishy here, maybe even a trap!”
Hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement.
But Lynn shook his head, smiling mysteriously. “I don’t think so. Since we’ve made it this far, it means the curse here is almost gone. Though I don’t know the reason, there might be something valuable down there, don’t you think?”
The King of Secret Source grew anxious. “How… how could there be anything valuable down there?!”
Lynn raised an eyebrow. “Mr. Rein, why are you sweating so much? Do you know something we don’t?”
The King of Secret Source choked on his words.
Looking at this infuriating guy, he really wanted to punch him right then and there!
He gritted his teeth and said, “No… it’s just a gut feeling. This is my first time here too…”
Lynn chuckled. “Then what’s the problem? Don’t worry, Mr. Rein, I understand your caution, but we’re all powerful mages. Nothing bad will happen!”
The King of Secret Source felt like he was about to crack.
No!
If there’s really something valuable, it’s fine if this guy takes it. It’s not like I haven’t been tricked by him before, but… but…
The things here are different!
Lynn (ノ￣▽￣) said, “Alright! Alright, Mr. Rein, don’t worry. Just stay behind us and follow along. If we do find something, we’ll definitely share it with you!”
Then Lynn pushed past him and confidently strode down the passageway.
Nanako followed closely, jogging up to the King of Secret Source and patting his shoulder reassuringly:
“Don’t worry, Nanako won’t let my disciple hog everything. You can count on it!”
Pitter-patter—
Nanako hugged her sturdy staff and jogged down after Lynn.
Elina gave the King of Secret Source an encouraging look, blinking as she said, “Mr. Rein, don’t be afraid. Just stay behind us, and we’ll definitely protect you!”
Pitter-patter—
Elina also eagerly followed.
The other girls, one after another, offered words of comfort to the King of Secret Source before heading down as well.
“It’s over for me!”
The King of Secret Source wailed.
……
Soon.
The group passed through the hidden door and reached the end of the passageway.
At the end was a small magical teleportation portal.
With a series of flashes, they found themselves transported to a large chamber.
And it seemed like they weren’t underground in the ruins anymore, but somewhere else entirely.
“Where is this…?”
They looked around in confusion.
The glittering treasure vault they had imagined didn’t appear.
Instead, what greeted them were rows upon rows of neatly arranged bookshelves, filled with all kinds of ancient books.
Lynn was also puzzled.
He walked up to one of the shelves and picked up a scroll, reading the title aloud.
“Autobiography: Some Insights from Two Hundred Years of Crossdressing.”
Lynn’s eyes widened instantly.
He quickly grabbed another scroll.
“Thesis: On Whether Falling in Love with My Crossdressing Self Counts as Love.”
Lynn was stunned.
He frantically picked up a few more books.
“Thesis: On the Feasibility of Self-Splitting.”
“Thesis: The Slight Annoyances of Playing Dual Roles After Successful Splitting.”
“Photo Collection: Passionate Moments Between Me and Little Source.”
As Lynn read the titles on these thick books, his eyes grew wider and wider.
Holy cow! Holy cow! Holy cow!
I think I’ve stumbled upon some incredible secrets here!
Lynn quickly flipped open one of the books, his eyes scanning the contents as he read aloud:
“I’ve realized that I’ve truly fallen in love with her. I’ve never seen eyes as captivating as hers. Even though I know she’s just me, whenever she looks at me, I feel my heart melting. I really want to hold her in my arms, cherish her, and protect her…”
“I’ve decided to name her Little Source~ Of course, she can also call me Little Secret~ Because I am her, and she is me. We are equal and inseparable. Ah—she’s my Angel, the scar etched into my heart. In her presence, I feel like I’m melting~”
“Of course, I must also thank that jerk. If I hadn’t lost a bet with him and been forced to crossdress, I would never have discovered this new world. He made me realize that the only true love is with oneself, and only another version of myself can truly enter this ancient heart of mine~”
“I’m willing to take a room full of photos with her!!”
Lynn looked up in a daze, staring at the countless books in the room, the one in his hand falling to the ground with a thud.
Nanako, curious, walked over.
“Is there something special in there?”
Then she reached out.
She picked up the photo collection from the shelf and curiously flipped it open.
“Eep—”
Nanako instantly covered her mouth, hiccuping, her eyes wide and her cheeks burning red all the way to her neck.
Her ahoge even shot straight up.
So… so scandalous…
Why are there such naughty books here?!
She flipped another page.
“Eep, eep—”
Nanako’s eyes widened, her body trembling slightly.
So impressive, they can even do… such difficult poses…
Puffs of steam rose from Nanako’s head as she blushed, her eyes glued to the book in her hands.
With every page she turned, another puff of steam emerged, making her look like a little steam engine.
Elina and the other girls, seeing this, grew even more curious.
What kind of interesting book is that?
Why does Nanako seem so… different now?
Filled with curiosity, they each picked up a photo collection from the shelves.
They opened them and took a look.
“Eek—”
“Eep—”
“Wow—”
“So… so risqué… Why are there so many naughty books here…?”
“Wow—so impressive, such difficult poses!”
“But why do the main characters look a bit like Mr. Rein?”
The girls’ faces turned red as they excitedly whispered among themselves.
Meanwhile, by the stairs.
The King of Secret Source’s legs gave out, and he trembled as he tried to crawl upward.
His clothes were soaked with cold sweat, dripping onto the floor.
] [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!"
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
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)
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
