In the midst of the thick fog, a bonfire burned brightly.
Large pieces of split firewood were thrown into the bonfire, making the flames sway and sending up a large cluster of sparks.
The sparks rose with the heat of the bonfire and met the fog shrouding the woods. They quickly extinguished, cooled, and disappeared.
In contrast, the vigorous bonfire dispelled all the cold and fog from the Qingxuan Sect's camp, leaving only the firelight illuminating the ground.
The Qingxuan Sect's disciples sat around the bonfire with their backs to it and facing out of the camp.
While the bonfire warmed the spines of the Qingxuan disciples, the firelight shone through the gaps between them and fell on the ground, extending outward until being swallowed by darkness.
"All disciples, listen up!"
The Qingxuan Sect Master stood at the side of the bonfire with a stern, extremely cold voice: "Be vigilant and don't relax!"
"No one is to leave before dawn. Stay right here!"
"Yes!"
Amidst the shouts, alarmed bird cries could be heard from the distance as they left their nests noisily.
"Dad, what exactly happened?"
Ling'er, the young girl who was still yawning, looked to her father puzzledly. Ziyin quickly whispered, "Junior sister, don't make trouble."
"But I'm just..."
Ling'er was about to speak up when she noticed her father's icy stare. She immediately closed her mouth and retreated a step to hide behind Ziyin.
Ling'er looked around with resentment that she didn't dare express.
Although petulant, she also understood how to read the situation.
She knew her father was in a bad mood, so she furled her banner and surrendered. She sat cross-legged on the icy ground, hugging her Northern Spirit Dog, Thirteen, to keep warm.
Though it was early spring, the ground hadn't stirred with vital energy yet and winter's chill still lingered on the earth.
As the saying goes, the spring cold cuts bitterly!
Ling'er had only been sitting on the ground for a moment before she started fidgeting restlessly.
The ground was too cold and hard, with little stones poking. Only sitting by the bonfire was comfortable.
"Geez, why make everyone stay up instead of sleeping tonight!"
Ling'er rested her chin on Thirteen's head. She hugged the little dog tightly while Ziyin sighed.
By now, he and the Sect Master were among the few who knew the night watch disciples had completely disappeared without a trace—dead or alive.
As for why the news was suppressed...
It was to avoid panic and unrest which would impair the disciples' usual judgment and calm execution.
For their sake, suppressing the news was necessary.
"Endure it for a bit longer, junior sister!"
Ziyin took off his cloak he had fetched earlier and draped it over the girl.
"It'll be over once day breaks."
"Alright...."
Ling'er sighed and closed her eyes, hugging the dog in her arms.
What? Can't sleep?
She was the Sect Master's daughter. What's wrong with sleeping?
Not only could she sleep, she could sleep hugging the priceless Northern Spirit Dog like a hot stove—smelly but cozy!
Just as Ling'er dozed off, Duke who was squatting at the tent entrance clicked his tongue.
He had intended to feed the dog earlier but when he entered, he found the dog missing. Before Duke could search for it, the entire Qingxuan Sect had mobilized.
"Still too slow!"
Duke whispered to himself with another sigh. He had done a lot of unnecessary things tonight.
He should've been more direct and decisive—knocked the girl out cold under the night's cover and taken away the dog.
"It's because I was too greedy, making things overly complicated!"
The cat summed up his actions to himself while reminding himself to avoid such mistakes in the future.
He didn't fear making mistakes but repeating them out of ignorance without summarizing and drawing lessons—that would be a grave mistake indeed.
Isn't growth about succeeding, failing, summarizing, and learning over and over again?
"Looks like I'll have to find another chance to take the dog."
"Wonder where the Qingxuan people will move after tonight..."
As Duke watched the Qingxuan members, he suddenly propped himself up with his front limbs and stood, gazing heavily upwards with a twitching nose, smelling the air.
"This smell..." Duke kept inhaling deeply to identify the abnormal scent diffusing in the air.
Just then, an evil wind howled out from the woods, blowing fog toward the camp.
As the evil wind hit, swaying the bonfire, alternating light and darkness swept over the camp under the flickering flames.
The unsteady firelight disrupted many Qingxuan disciples' vision.
Light and darkness exchanged continuously, replacing each other and hindering sight.
"Which unruly bandit dares behave so evilly!!"
As the Sect Master shouted, thunder rumbling in his mouth, his free right hand swung his sleeve, filling it with wind. His expansive sleeve billowed.
The moment his entire sleeve inflated, his right arm stabbed out swiftly, stirring up a powerful palm force gale inside the camp.
In a flash, the fog carried in by the evil wind was scattered by the Sect Master's strike.
The fog visibly experienced immense pressure as the turbulent airflow tore it apart along the ground while more was shredded by the palm force.
"Tsk, this palm skill... has been tempered by at least ten years of True Essence realm cultivation!"
Duke clicked his tongue and was secretly glad he hadn't attacked recklessly, barely restraining himself.
Otherwise, if this guy discovered him...
Bundling offer! Buy one Spirit Cat, get one Spirit Dog free!
"However..." Duke carefully smelled the air again. The scent from before had grown richer after the evil wind.
"This smell is..."
The cat's eyelid twitched as he covered his little nose.
"Pew, it's fox stench!"
At the same time, Thirteen, held in Ling'er's arms, also struggled violently, starting to howl incessantly.
"Awoo!!"
"Awoooo awooo!!"
"Awoo... arooo.... woof.... awooo awooo!!"
...
The series of howls attracted everyone's attention.
After striking out a palm, the Sect Master looked to his daughter.
"Ling'er, quiet that spirit dog."
"I can't control him, dad!"
Ling'er hugged Thirteen's neck but he remained fierce and wild. The power bursting from his small body nearly overwhelmed even the martial artist Ling'er.
"Master, this spirit dog must have noticed something wrong!"
Gazing at the rabidly barking Thirteen, Ziyin suddenly spoke.
"The spirit dog gave warning?"
The Sect Master knitted his brows. This was not an auspicious sign!
The barks carried far in the silent night. At the same time, a pair of eyes in the woods narrowed.
"Damn, what a dirty-mouthed dog!"
] [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!"
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with yanderes.
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
