The roar of a motorcycle engine echoed on the highway.
The spinning tires of the motorcycle, so fast that the hubs were barely visible, sent sprays of water flying to either side of the road.
Ning Yu wore a helmet, feeling the cold, wet chill seeping through her body, and inwardly cursed her bad luck.
It never rained when she stayed indoors, but as soon as she stepped out, the rain was sure to come. How was it that even after being reborn, she still had to deal with this?
Her skirt, soaked by the rain, was starting to feel a bit dirty.
Normally, Ning Yu wouldn't have cared about such things, but today, everything seemed to go wrong, making her irritable.
A few oblivious zombies ahead seemed intent on blocking her path. Ning Yu reached into her spatial storage and pulled out a pistol, dispatching each of them with a bullet through the forehead.
As they fell, their black blood was washed away by the rain, staining the ground.
Ning Yu rode her motorcycle over them, splashing the diluted black water onto a nearby billboard.
She wanted to find a place to rest, start a fire to dry herself, but felt it would be a waste of time. So, she continued on, hesitating.
...
Shen Yiyue slowly sat up in bed, feeling a bit dizzy.
She turned her head to look out the window. The sky was overcast, and the cool autumn breeze carried the dampness of the rain.
She felt a bit cold and was about to burrow back under the blanket when something suddenly caught her attention.
On the nightstand was a folded piece of paper, with a pen resting on top.
She blinked, her eyes widening, then forced a sad smile:
"Ning Yu... you big liar."
The thought of going back to sleep was gone. She glanced at the time—it was already past 10 a.m.
She got up, dressed, tied her black hair loosely, and stood.
She tucked the note Ning Yu had left her into her pocket and pulled out a gray-covered diary from under her pillow, beginning to write.
"Knock knock knock."
There was a knock at her door.
Shen Qianqian pushed the door open and peered in cautiously, seeing her sister writing at the desk.
"Sis... have you had breakfast yet?"
She had woken up this morning to an empty living room, which felt different from usual.
So she had eaten some bread for breakfast, but seeing her sister hadn't gotten up, she came to ask.
"I'll be right there."
Shen Yiyue had finished writing, stopped her work, and walked over with Shen Qianqian.
The two returned to the dining table, though Shen Qianqian had already eaten, so only Shen Yiyue had breakfast.
She fetched a box of mango milk from the corner and glanced at the remaining strawberry milk boxes.
Shen Qianqian sat beside her, watching Shen Yiyue eat slowly, neither speaking.
"Sis..."
Shen Qianqian finally couldn't hold it in and asked softly.
"Hmm? What's up?"
Shen Yiyue turned her head, her milk box already empty, the straw making a slurping sound as it sucked the last drop, the box collapsing.
"Did... did you and Ning Yu sister have a fight?"
She looked up at her sister, her watery eyes wide, unlike her usual playful self. She didn't joke around today, just asked seriously.
She glanced at Ning Yu's room.
The door was wide open, the room meticulously tidied, the bed made.
It was so clean it looked as if no one had lived there.
"If... if you two had a fight... should I go talk to her and make up... okay?"
She looked at Shen Yiyue with hope, but her sister remained silent, nibbling on her bread.
Shen Yiyue could see that her sister really liked Ning Yu and enjoyed the days the three of them spent together.
So with Ning Yu suddenly gone, it must have made her sister feel uneasy.
She thought there must have been some irreconcilable conflict between them.
Shen Yiyue suddenly reached out and patted her sister's head, seeing her looking like a worried little adult, and smiled:
"You're overthinking it. Ning Yu has some things to take care of, so she'll be gone for a few days. She'll be back soon."
"Really?!"
Shen Qianqian glanced at the strawberry milk in the corner. She hadn't touched Ning Yu's remaining boxes, having just had water with her bread for breakfast.
But she still felt unsure.
"Isn't Ning Yu sister... running away from home?"
In Shen Qianqian's vocabulary, this situation could only be described as "running away from home."
"Pfft."
Shen Yiyue suddenly laughed, finding her usually mischievous sister especially cute today.
"Don't worry. If Ning Yu dares not to come back, sis will go catch her!"
Shen Yiyue made claw hands, pretending to be fierce.
"And make her cook for a week! Uh... plus do the dishes!"
"Wow... sis, you're such a demon..."
Shen Qianqian played along, making an exaggerated face.
...
"Damn it."
Ning Yu pulled her motorcycle to the side of the road, knowing she had no choice but to stop.
The motorcycle's quality was truly subpar. As the rain grew heavier, its speed slowed until it finally stalled.
But City A's Wetland Park was very close now, so Ning Yu decided to walk the rest of the way.
The number of zombies around had clearly increased, but their vision and hearing were severely affected by the heavy rain, so only a few noticed Ning Yu.
To Ning Yu, they were just easier-to-kill points.
She made her way toward the Wetland Park, cutting down wandering zombies as she went. Her body was still full of energy, but she felt a mental weariness.
She remembered the times when Shen Yiyue took care of killing zombies while she lazed behind, earning points, and the two of them chatting and laughing.
Now, her drenched skirt clung uncomfortably to her, and with the increased zombie density, she couldn't avoid getting some bloodstains.
When she got back, she'd definitely make Shen Yiyue pick out a few more outfits for her—this one was probably ruined...
Soon, Ning Yu reached the entrance of the Wetland Park.
The park gates were tightly closed, as if someone had deliberately locked them, and she saw the remains of zombies inside.
Without hesitation, she vaulted over the closed gates.
As soon as she landed, Ning Yu heard some movement among the park's trees, barely audible over the rain.
But Ning Yu's sharp hearing caught every sound.
She smiled for the first time in a while, hoping for a few mutant zombies to relieve her boredom.
After all, today, her mood was really terrible!
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
