!!
At those words, Ah Yin stiffened and froze in place.
She looked at Liu Hao in disbelief and asked, aggrieved, "What do you mean?"
Ah Yin's affection -5. Current affection: 30.
Another affection drop.
Liu Hao was a little annoyed. He already possessed more than enough strength, so why couldn't he do as he pleased?
Benevolence? Kindness?
Were they truths, or shackles?
With power at the pinnacle of this world, did he really still need to follow those mortal rules?
Looking at Tang Hao, who filled him with disgust, Liu Hao suddenly understood something.
Since Ah Yin had chosen to stand on Tang Hao's side, why should he treat her with benevolence, righteousness, or morality?
Sometimes, simply belonging to different camps meant meeting different ends.
Wasn't that exactly what had happened to Spirit Hall in the original story?
At that thought, something in Liu Hao's mind seemed to click into place.
Not ripe yet? Then force her to ripen!
Liu Hao didn't answer Ah Yin immediately. Instead, he swept his hand, gathered everyone together, and slipped into the void to return to Shrek Academy.
Along the way, Liu Hao kept chatting and joking with Xiao Wu, raising her affection.
Before long, Xiao Wu's affection reached its maximum.
Xiao Wu's affection +1. Current affection: 100. Affection lock unlocked. Xiao Wu's affection will never decrease.
Nice! Now I can flirt with and win over other girls right in front of Xiao Wu.
Liu Hao stroked Xiao Wu's head as she nestled against his chest, but his thoughts were on Ah Yin, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing.
In this world, people-especially soul masters-developed physically far faster than ordinary people in his previous life.
Generally, by twelve, their physiques were already close to those of adults.
So Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing could actually all be considered adults now.
That included him. In appearance, he was no different from an adult.
He stood 1.8 meters tall and had a fairly well-proportioned build. The only pity was that his face wasn't handsome enough.
Yet just as that thought occurred to him, Liu Hao's mind suddenly stalled. Or rather, the moment he realized something was wrong, he had already lost the ability to perceive the world or control his body.
Of course, it wasn't just Liu Hao. Xiao Wu, Tang San, Ah Yin, Tang Hao, the surrounding void, Shrek Academy, Suotuo City, the Heaven Dou Empire, Spirit City, and finally the entire Douluo Continent-even the unknown Divine Realm, the whole vast universe, space and time, and everything within them-all stopped, frozen still.
Only the system inside Liu Hao's mind could still move.
Then a solemn voice rose from some unknown place and drifted down from the heavens like an absolute truth of the world: "The protagonist's looks are improving too slowly~ bad review~"
The system, which normally swaggered before Liu Hao as though it could take on heaven, earth, and the very air itself, instantly became docile upon hearing that voice. It muttered in disbelief:
"A Reader Realm powerhouse actually made a move. Damn it, I'm only at the author realm. I'm no match for this guy at all. Looks like I'll have to compromise."
"Understood, exalted immortal. Please withdraw your divine power. I'll strengthen Liu Hao's looks cheat right away!"
"Good."
Only after that voice faded did space and time throughout the cosmos begin moving again.
The Divine Realm, the Douluo Continent, Spirit City, the Heaven Dou Empire... all the way down to the void around Liu Hao and Xiao Wu and the others, everything returned to normal.
"Strange."
Once Liu Hao could move again, he vaguely felt that something was wrong, but couldn't put his finger on it.
Ding! Due to the influence of an unknown power, the host's appearance improvement function has been enhanced. Original function: Each time the host washes his face with clean water, appearance +1. Daily limit: once. New function: Each time the host washes his face with clean water, appearance +10. No daily limit. Maximum value: 100. Current appearance: 35.
What?
Liu Hao's eyes widened in disbelief.
That cocky bastard of a system would actually give him a free perk?
Wait, the influence of an unknown power?
What did that mean? Liu Hao was completely bewildered.
Still, none of that mattered. If he couldn't figure it out, he wouldn't bother thinking about it.
Being able to improve his looks quickly was fantastic.
After all, attraction to handsome or beautiful members of the opposite sex was an instinct etched into the genes.
Especially for someone like Hu Liena, who cared so much about looks, having a handsome face would send the difficulty of winning her over plummeting.
A wonderful life with three thousand beauties was practically within reach.
The more Liu Hao thought about it, the more excited he became. He drove his soul power at full strength and soon returned to the woods at Shrek Academy.
"Tang Hao, Tang San, you two can get lost." The moment they landed, Liu Hao ordered them away.
Although his tone was far from friendly, Tang San and his father weren't angry. Instead, they felt immensely relieved. After all, their lives had been spared.
"Mom, let's leave together." Tang San looked at Ah Yin with a smile.
Clearly, he still wanted to make an effort to secure some motherly love.
But before Ah Yin could answer, Liu Hao said irritably, "Little Scumbag, can't you understand human speech? I told you and Haozi to get lost. Why are you calling Ah Yin?"
"..."
Tang San froze, bitterness filling his heart.
He had thought he could finally begin enjoying a mother's love, only for someone to snatch his mother away.
Tang Hao, on the other hand, barely reacted, as though he had expected this all along.
After Liu Hao resurrected Ah Yin, Tang Hao had sensed something was amiss when Liu Hao wouldn't let her embrace him.
The current situation merely confirmed his suspicions.
At last, Ah Yin also realized that Liu Hao seemed to harbor ill intentions toward her.
"What do you want to keep me here for?" Ah Yin asked coldly.
Ah Yin's affection -15. Current affection: 15.
"Ah Yin, you're as clever as ice and snow. You guessed what was on my mind right away."
The corners of Liu Hao's mouth rose into a meaningful smile.
"What?" Ah Yin asked, puzzled.
But Liu Hao didn't answer her again.
He merely transmitted his voice to her: "Madam, if you don't want Tang Hao and Tang San to disappear from this world, you'd better be a good girl and obey~"
"!"
Ah Yin's pupils abruptly contracted, her beautiful eyes widening into perfect circles.
Although she had suspected something earlier, only upon hearing this increasingly blatant warning did she finally become certain that Liu Hao had improper designs on her.
Ah Yin's affection -15. Current affection: 0.
"Brother Hao..."
Ah Yin helplessly looked toward Tang Hao, only to discover that he had already disappeared with Tang San.
Two trails of clear tears slid down her delicate cheeks. Ah Yin felt a little disappointed, but she could understand. Her husband must have gone to find a solution. After some time, he would come back to rescue her.
"Brother~ why did you keep Ah Yin here?" Xiao Wu suddenly asked in confusion.
"To keep Ah Yin away from that scumbag Tang Hao and make her your sister~" Liu Hao pinched Xiao Wu's pretty cheek and answered with a wicked grin.
"Sister?"
Xiao Wu was still confused, but Liu Hao offered no further explanation.
"Let's go. We'll find Zhu Zhuqing first."
"Okay."
Liu Hao brought Xiao Wu and Ah Yin to the door of Zhu Zhuqing's dorm room.
A sweep of his divine sense revealed Zhu Zhuqing sitting cross-legged on her bed, cultivating.
She really works hard~
With that inward sigh, Liu Hao transmitted his voice to her: "My good little disciple, stop cultivating and come out. Your master has something nice for you."
Absorbed in her cultivation, Zhu Zhuqing initially froze upon hearing that strange form of address. But the familiar voice quickly brought her to her senses, and she hurried to get up and open the door.
"Teacher."
Before you continue