In the old house on Riverside Road, Saint Callen East District.
A sudden knock on the door startled Evelyn, who was lounging on the sofa doing her daily beauty routine.
"Hold on a moment..."
She shouted toward the door, stretched lazily, and then sauntered over to open it.
Standing outside was Helena, dressed in a coat, her expression blank.
"Oh," Evelyn glanced at her, "You're right on time, aren't you?"
With that, she turned and walked back lazily.
"Remember to take off your shoes when you come in. The slippers are in the second cabinet on the left. Oh, and don't forget to close the door."
"I know! Do you think I need you to tell me?" Helena rolled her eyes at Evelyn's back.
Then, she silently gazed at the threshold of the door.
After hesitating for a moment, she stepped into the living room.
It had been a long time since she had returned since the battle in this old house.
She quietly surveyed her surroundings. Except for the broken furniture that had been replaced with new ones, everything else was as she remembered it, still familiar.
Looking at the familiar scenes before her, it felt as though everything had returned to the days when she lived here with her brother, and Helena felt an overwhelming sense of nostalgia.
However, when her gaze fell on the sofa, there was something that made her eyes sting with irritation.
That woman...
She was lounging on the sofa in her pajamas, barefoot, with no socks, and the coffee table was cluttered with all sorts of human snacks, a chaotic mess...
And she herself was even wearing a face mask, humming a little tune while reading a newspaper!
Helena felt a surge of unidentified anger rising within her.
Did she really think this was her own home now?
Just as Helena was about to erupt in anger, Evelyn, noticing that Helena hadn't moved for a while, casually added:
"If you want something to drink, help yourself. There's black tea in the cabinet."
Her tone and demeanor were incredibly natural.
As if she were the lady of the house, and Helena had become the guest.
Helena's gaze turned icy, and a chill spread through the living room.
She forced a smile and asked, "Not bad, huh... You're really comfortable living here, aren't you?"
Evelyn could certainly feel the sarcasm in this remark and immediately sat up.
She tore off the face mask and smiled back, asking:
"Otherwise? I'm the tenant of Room 001, but you..."
Her smile carried a hint of mockery, "You haven't even dared to let your brother take you in, let alone return to live here. If he were here, I doubt you'd even dare to step through the door, would you?"
Seeing Helena becoming more and more agitated, Evelyn's lips curled into a mischievous smile.
"If that's the case, who are you to talk? You know, the relationship I have with your brother is even deeper than yours~"
As soon as she finished speaking, Helena's tentacles almost shot out.
But she clenched her fists and managed to suppress her anger.
Helena stared at the face of the annoying woman, struggling to control her killing intent, constantly reassuring herself.
Today's visit was for the purpose of researching a way to save her brother...
Let this woman be arrogant for now. Once her brother returns...
There will be a time for her to suffer!
After some self-comforting, Helena sat down as far away from her as possible and asked coldly, "How's the investigation going on finding my brother?"
When it came to business, Evelyn finally toned down her lazy demeanor and slapped the newspaper onto the coffee table.
"Isn't it under investigation right now?"
"Investigation?" Helena gave her a suspicious look, "Eating snacks and reading newspapers counts as investigation?"
Evelyn gave her a disdainful glance, "That's where you're ignorant. Even your brother always maintains the habit of reading the new newspapers every day. You know, a lot of potential information is hidden in these vast amounts of text."
Seeing her serious expression, Helena nodded, half-understanding.
So she was really investigating...
It seemed she wasn't as indifferent and unconcerned about the matter as she had imagined...
Helena quickly asked again, "So, have you found any clues?"
Evelyn looked at her with an incredibly serious expression, and Helena immediately became solemn.
"Well?" she asked expectantly.
Evelyn shook her head, "No clues."
Helena jumped up in anger, feeling the urge to kill this woman.
"I know you're anxious, but first, calm down..." Evelyn smiled wryly, trying to soothe her.
"The other side has power and influence, making it all too easy for them to hide their tracks. I've already contacted the friends I've made over the years, from all walks of life, and I've also asked my family for help. Once there's a lead, she'll come find me immediately."
Thinking of Evelyn's noble background, Helena's mood finally calmed down a bit.
She sat back down and glanced at the newspapers on the coffee table.
The headline news was still the airship explosion case she had personally experienced.
"You've been focusing on this case?" she asked confusedly, "What does this have to do with saving my brother?"
Evelyn immediately revealed a mysterious smile, "Of course—it's related."
"What relation?" Helena looked at her, puzzled.
She remembered her brother mentioning that this should have been an assassination attempt on Ophelia, but since the assassination failed, the crisis was over. What did this have to do with rescuing her trapped brother?
"A guest will be coming to the house soon. When he arrives, you'll know."
Evelyn's smile was enigmatic.
Helena became even more confused. Seeing her look as if everything was under control, it seemed she already had a plan.
"At a time like this, why are you being so cryptic..." she muttered irritably.
After that, the two sat in silence in the living room for quite a while, waiting for the guest Evelyn had mentioned.
Occasionally, they would exchange a few words, but they were all about Luo Wei.
Finally, as the evening rush hour approached in this steam-powered city, there was another knock at the door.
Helena ran over to open it.
The visitor turned out to be Captain Raymond.
"Oh? You're both here!" Captain Raymond didn't stand on ceremony, hanging up his hat and coat before walking straight in.
"Good evening, Captain," Evelyn greeted with a smile.
"Sorry for being late."
Captain Raymond looked very tired. He sat on the sofa and sighed, "I've been working overtime lately, checking suspicious characters in the city, inspecting flammable and explosive materials, and dealing with those accountability councilors... If I hadn't taken leave to come here, I wouldn't know when I'd get a chance to rest..."
"You've worked hard, Captain," Helena said with deep gratitude, pouring him a cup of hot black tea.
"Oh, thank you..." Captain Raymond held the teacup, curiously glancing at Helena.
He remembered her from the restaurant where he had looked for Luo Wei. At the time, he thought she was Luo Wei's girlfriend or something.
But after returning, he suddenly recalled that he had seen her four or five years ago, Luo Wei's sister. It was just that the little girl had grown up and matured, so he hadn't recognized her at first.
So it seemed he had misunderstood, almost thinking they were a couple.
If that was the case, Luo Wei's real girlfriend should be the young woman on the sofa.
He had met her once before, and he didn't expect she would actively seek him out, asking him to investigate Luo Wei's disappearance.
Captain Raymond glanced at the young woman on the sofa, thinking to himself that Luo Wei was quite the lucky fellow...
Although there was a bit of an age gap between them, it didn't seem like much. Recently, wasn't there a trend for age-gap relationships?
"Well... about your boyfriend's case, I've been keeping an eye on it privately..."
Captain Raymond continued, "He disappeared on the night of the explosion. The carriage he was riding in, I couldn't retrieve the exit registration, since the other party has royal background... However, my informants reported to me that several high-level black carriages left the city south that night, so the general direction of his departure can be determined..."
As he finished speaking, both Evelyn and Helena stood up excitedly.
"The south?"
"Boyfriend?"
The two women seemed to be focusing on different things.
“Since they left the city from the south...” Evelyn thought silently. Based on the subtle connection between them, Luo Wei should be relatively close to her. He was most likely in the south of Saint Callen, perhaps in the southern suburbs, or maybe in the rural areas and neighboring cities to the south.
Meanwhile, Helena was thinking, *Boyfriend? How could my brother be this woman’s boyfriend??*
Her gaze darkened as she slowly shifted her eyes toward Captain Raymond.
Captain Raymond had no idea what was going on. He only felt the temperature in the living room suddenly drop.
“Did you open the windows? Why is it so cold in here?” He shivered and took a sip of his hot black tea.
But before he could finish, Helena snatched the cup away.
She glared at him angrily. If it weren’t for her brother’s situation, she wouldn’t be so accommodating!
Hmph! If it were before, the captain wouldn’t be drinking this black tea! He’d be drinking the kind I served Evelyn the first time!
Captain Raymond was taken aback. He looked at Helena with confusion.
What did I do to offend her? Luo Wei’s sister has such a strange temper.
Evelyn covered her mouth and laughed, her eyes full of amusement.

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.”

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!

shall grant"] ["Inscribing the glory of our race upon tombstones"] ["All that is threatened, I shall protect"] How his younger sister sees her brother: A brother who only makes eye contact once a day, mostly fading into the background as he tinkers with who-knows-what in his room all day. Their life paths should have remained largely separate. Until one day. Su Qi created an equipment card for his never-met "online girlfriend." His sister fell into silent contemplation upon receiving the "white stockings." [Card can be upgraded] [Upgrade by fulfilling any of the following conditions] [Condition ①: Consume one hundred higher-tier cards] [Condition ②: Complete one 'Heart-Pounding Adventure'] What constitutes a Heart-Pounding Adventure? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Beginner Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to admire it.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Easy Level): Equip the card, invite 'Su Qi' to touch it, and analyze the equipment's texture.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Entry Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to...] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Challenge Level): Freely combine the words 'Brother' 'Out' 'Brother' 'Me' 'Please' into a complete sentence...] "Please help me analyze both teams' mistakes in this match, brother..." His sister exhaled in relief—surely... surely there couldn't be anything more difficult? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Suicide Mission Level): Sneak a peek at the names of the galgames in 'Su Qi's' hidden E-drive folder]

for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?