Return

Return

Gu Qingshan sensed within himself and found that the Spiritual Power in his Dantian had indeed grown a little stronger.

The Military Bow in his hand also seemed lighter, an illusion brought on by his increased physical strength.

Gu Qingshan nodded in satisfaction and glanced at the hourglass above the interface.

The sand in the hourglass had run out.

Immediately after, a line of small text swiftly appeared in the center of the interface.

"Player Gu Qingshan has remained in the Otherworld for 24 hours and will soon return to the Real World."

"All equipment has been stored in the Storage Bag and may be retrieved again when needed."

"Beginning return."

A faint wave of dizziness struck him.

Gu Qingshan opened his eyes to find soft, luxurious carpeting beneath his feet. He was kneeling on one knee before a beautiful girl.

The hall was lavishly decorated, just like a venue for high-society gatherings.

The only discordant thing was that the gentle, soothing dance music was mixed with noisy cheers and raucous encouragement.

"Say yes to him!"

"Kid, hurry up and say it!"

Voices rose one after another.

Gu Qingshan looked around, his gaze finally settling on the girl before him.

Sure enough, she looked good in anything. Even without a single piece of jewelry, wearing only a plain white dress, she could still be spotted at a glance among countless girls.

Su Xue'er.

A name once carved deep into his memories, one he had never forgotten.

Gu Qingshan closed his eyes, then opened them again.

There was concern and anxiety in the girl's eyes, but even more helplessness.

Without betraying anything, Gu Qingshan swiftly surveyed his surroundings.

It was a familiar scene. The moment from his memories had not yet happened.

So I really did travel back.

This was the turning point of his entire life.

Suddenly, someone slapped his shoulder hard and encouraged him, "Qingshan, come on! Be brave and say what's in your heart!"

Gu Qingshan turned his gaze toward the man.

Zhang Ye, his high school friend.

"Su Xue'er, Gu Qingshan has something to tell you!"

"That's right, he prepared for a long time. He wants to tell you what's in his heart."

"Gu Qingshan, say it. We're all here to bear witness."

More people in the crowd continued to egg him on.

Seeing that Gu Qingshan remained silent, Su Xue'er finally spoke.

"Gu Qingshan, you don't seem like you have anything to say to me. Did someone egg you on and play a prank on you, so you came up here?"

The instant she spoke, everyone fell silent.

They all wanted to see whether Gu Qingshan would, as rumored, confess his love at today's graduation dance.

Gu Qingshan listened carefully to her words and smiled faintly.

The girl was still as clever and considerate as ever. She had even thoughtfully prepared an excuse for him to step down.

Unfortunately, in his previous life, he had still fallen into someone else's trap.

Gu Qingshan rose to his feet and brushed the dust from his knees.

"Actually, it's like this. I sincerely hope you'll agree to one thing," he said calmly.

"What is it?"

The girl suddenly tensed.

What was wrong with him today? He could not even understand what she was saying?

Gu Qingshan said seriously, "Come to my Barbecue Stand tomorrow night and try my cooking."

Su Xue'er froze.

The people who had been egging him on were stunned.

The crowd watching around them was utterly dumbfounded.

"Barbecue? Just dinner? Nothing else?" Su Xue'er's eyes lit up.

"Of course," Gu Qingshan said.

Su Xue'er widened her beautiful eyes, glanced through the crowd, and said, "But your good friend Zhang Ye said that you were going to—"

Gu Qingshan cut her off. "I never told him anything."

Su Xue'er understood at once.

"Is that so? So none of this was your idea."

She seemed to let out a breath of relief, and a smile appeared on her face.

Seeing that things were going wrong, Zhang Ye hurriedly said, "Qingshan, didn't you tell me that you were going to confess to Su Xue'er today?"

The crowd erupted in uproar.

Gu Qingshan turned his head and gave him a cold look.

Like Gu Qingshan, Zhang Ye had been born into poverty and earned admission to this elite high school through outstanding grades.

Over their three years of high school, the two had forged a deep friendship.

Gu Qingshan had once believed that the other man was a brother as close as flesh and blood.

Who would have thought that at today's graduation dance, Zhang Ye would drug his wine?

As a result, while he was confessing to Su Xue'er, the drug took effect, and he publicly tried to commit obscene and shameless acts against her.

In the end, Su Xue'er's guards and a group of student council officers had pinned Gu Qingshan down firmly.

The incident shook the entire school.

Gu Qingshan had originally earned Su Xue'er's attention because he had good grades, considerable talent, and a gentle personality.

After this happened, Su Xue'er was completely disappointed in him. She slapped him in front of everyone and ran away crying.

The Su Family flew into a rage over the matter and declared that they wanted Gu Qingshan dead.

The school expelled him without hesitation, not even leaving him the chance to take the college entrance examinations.

In the end, Su Xue'er pleaded bitterly with her family for three days before the head of the Su Family spared Gu Qingshan's life.

The head of the Su Family was the prefect who governed all of Changning Prefecture, and there were only nine prefects in the entire Federation.

From then on, Gu Qingshan endured scornful looks and ridicule. No one thought highly of him.

The tech research company where he had been working part-time fired him outright.

He sought schooling everywhere, yet not a single school dared accept him. When he tried to work for money, he could not even find a part-time job. In the end, he nearly starved to death in the slums.

And all of it had been bestowed upon him by his friend, Zhang Ye.

Gu Qingshan struggled bitterly through despair and confusion until the Otherworld connected with reality, finally giving him a chance to turn his life around.

Later, he left his homeland and went to the Fuxi Empire.

But throughout his life, whenever he woke from dreams in the middle of the night and recalled what had happened that day, Gu Qingshan wanted nothing more than to grind his teeth to dust.

Gu Qingshan had reflected on it before.

There had been an unspoken understanding between him and Su Xue'er.

But before he possessed any strength, he truly should not have dreamed of taking their relationship a step further.

That would only have made things difficult for Su Xue'er and placed Gu Qingshan himself in greater danger.

Fortunately, now that he had begun again in this life, Gu Qingshan would never repeat the same mistake.

Before everyone, Gu Qingshan looked at Zhang Ye and said softly, "You're mistaken. The one I truly like is Xie Shuangyan."

Knowing laughter burst from the crowd, and even Su Xue'er pressed her lips together and smiled.

Xie Shuangyan was the lead singer of the most popular girl group in the world today.

Whether in the northern Saint Orlanka Empire, the vast Fuxi Empire, or the southern Free Federation, countless men and women, young and old alike, had fallen beneath Xie Shuangyan's pomegranate skirt.

There were simply too many people in this world who liked Xie Shuangyan. Even Su Xue'er did not particularly mind Gu Qingshan saying such a thing.

A few shut-ins in the crowd even shouted, "Gu Qingshan, want to join Xie Shuangyan's fan club?"

Zhang Ye's expression shifted repeatedly as his heart slowly sank.

He had not expected Gu Qingshan to parry and strike in the same breath, lightly brushing the matter aside.

No, he absolutely could not let him go today. After all, he would never have another chance like this.

Gu Qingshan was his last chance to climb higher.

Zhang Ye gritted his teeth and stepped forward, whispering into Gu Qingshan's ear, "Gu Qingshan, your good days are over."

As he spoke, he slammed his palm down hard on Gu Qingshan's shoulder.

A slight stabbing pain came from the spot.

It was a needle Zhang Ye had hidden in his hand.

Gu Qingshan watched him intently, all the way until he finished doing everything.

"Tsk, tsk. So there was another trick like this," Gu Qingshan remarked.

Zhang Ye, however, felt as though a weight had been lifted from his heart.

The dose on the needle was stronger. In just another minute, Gu Qingshan would no longer be able to suppress his body's instincts.

"Why would you do this to me? I remember we were friends," Gu Qingshan asked curiously, staring at him.

Zhang Ye lowered his gaze unconsciously and muttered, "Don't blame me. In this world, poor people can only live better if they seize their opportunities."

With that, he suddenly shoved Gu Qingshan toward Su Xue'er.

The heat in Gu Qingshan's body grew more and more intense, his breathing heavier and rougher. Staggering backward, he retreated all the way to Su Xue'er's side.

The drug was beginning to take effect.

Gu Qingshan's heart turned ice-cold.

He suddenly remembered how Su Xue'er had once seemed to mention Zhang Ye casually.

"Qingshan, the way Zhang Ye looks at people is different from yours."

Gu Qingshan shook his head inwardly.

Su Xue'er had always had such a sharp eye.

It was he who had been far too presumptuous.

With a thought from Gu Qingshan, the Spiritual Power in his Dantian surged forth, instantly suppressing the drug's effects. His burning body gradually cooled as well.

Clarity returned to Gu Qingshan's eyes, and he called out, "Aunt Su."

A mature, alluring woman and a white-haired old man appeared soundlessly.

These two were Su Xue'er's guards.

Su Xue'er was the legitimate eldest young lady of the Su Residence and the only heir of the Su Family's First Branch. She was usually cherished by the entire Su Family, so having two guards protecting her at all times was perfectly normal.

"What are you two up to?"

The mature woman glared at Gu Qingshan.

She followed Su Xue'er every day, so she knew this boy.

She had originally thought him intelligent and talented, with a decent temperament, but she had never expected him to create a confession ceremony today.

Such a rash action had placed immense pressure on Su Xue'er, and even this guard had become deeply disappointed in Gu Qingshan.

Moreover, she had originally been protecting Su Xue'er in secret, but now she had been summoned out into the open all at once, which added another measure of irritation to her heart.