Chapter 69

『Ahhh, you changed the plot again! Hiding such a massive dragon bone deducted another eighty action points!』

The system cried out in anguish.

『Fortunately, in the original plot Sela was going to escape anyway. Otherwise, letting such a dangerous villain get away would have cost an even greater amount.』

“This time, the expenditure really was excessive. It seems I will need to restrain myself next time.”

Ye Zheng blinked with a disappointed expression, though there was not a hint of remorse in her voice. It sounded as if she was only regretting that she could not act even more freely.

『Yes. Now we only have a little over two hundred points left.』

“Only this little left? Huh?”

“If I remember correctly, before entering this aberrant realm, I did not even have two hundred action points.”

Ye Zheng narrowed her eyes in confusion.

How was this thing increasing the more she spent it?

『That is because in the previous aberrant realm arc, your popularity as Ye Zheng had already been steadily rising. In this arc, both Zhao Mei and Ye Zheng had standout moments, so the popularity growth was especially rapid.』

『Especially in the last two chapters. The popularity spikes for both Zhao Mei and Ye Zheng were enormous.』

“That really is good news.”

Ye Zheng’s tone lightened again. The system could practically sense her relief at being able to continue causing trouble.

The boy stood at the edge of the crowd. After briefly greeting Pei Xi and the others, he left. The Cloud Soarers were accustomed to Zhao Mei’s mysterious behavior. With the shocking news of the Saintess’s disappearance, no one paid attention to his departure.

“Ye Zheng” needed to disappear. Otherwise, she would not have enough time to properly deal with that massive skull and Sela.

『Even though the popularity growth is impressive now, we still need to consider the situation after the reveal. We should conserve points and use them sparingly.』

The system reminded her tactfully.

"Since both Zhao Mei and Ye Zheng have strong appeal, if they merge into a single character, the popularity should not be low, right?"

As the boy walked through the cramped urban district, concealing his figure, he responded casually within his mind.

『Hmm... It is hard to predict popularity after the reveal, but readers will definitely explode.』

“The forum is already in complete chaos. I cannot imagine how Zhao Mei fans and Ye Zheng fans, who have been fighting nonstop, will react when they discover they are actually the same person.”

“Wait.”

Ye Zheng tilted her head. “You said who was fighting with whom?”

✧✧✧✧✧

During the days Ye Zheng spent busy within the Blood Flower aberrant realm, the manga released three full chapters.

As a Zhao Mei fan, Li Yixin, and as a Ye Zheng fan, Tang Mingxi experienced emotional whiplash over these three weeks.

At first, they were thrilled by the appearances and highlight scenes of their favorites, enthusiastically sharing and recommending them everywhere. The two girls praised each other’s beloved characters, enjoying the overwhelming content fed by fellow fans. Then, without warning, they somehow became rivals.

In the first week, Li Yixin opened the update and was delighted to see news of Zhao Mei at last. The team agreed to enter the high-risk aberrant realm together. Zhao Mei seemed to know something in advance and specifically reminded his teammates to bring certain special supplies.

However, once inside, everyone was randomly teleported. While Pei Xi explored the strange realm in search of his teammates, by the end of the first day he had found everyone except Zhao Mei.

Seeing this, Li Yixin grew increasingly anxious, fearing that something had happened to Zhao Mei. He was, after all, a resilient yet fragile healing-type.

Then came the second day. The Cloud Soarers encountered Yu Tianming after finding the Crown Prince’s camp. This noble youth from the Crown Prince’s faction explained the situation to them in an unusually gentle manner, informing them that the Crown Prince had been captured.

Compared to the shocking fact that the arrogant Sykes had been captured, what stunned readers even more was Zhao Mei’s appearance beside Yu Tianming. Even more unbelievable was that the prime minister’s son treated this mysterious boy with the utmost respect.

The comment section exploded.

【Wait, did Yu Tianming’s character just collapse?】

【What exactly is Zhao Mei’s background? Is his status higher than the prime minister’s son?】

【That oppressive energy from Mei-bao is insane.】

【Teacher, what happened to our Sykes being captured? Was he not author-certified as the strongest in combat?】

【Yu Tianming only bows to Sykes. My favorite lord-vassal pairing just collapsed.】

But when the next page turned to Yu Tianming’s recollection, the discussion surged even further.

While Pei Xi and the others were puzzled by Yu Tianming’s attitude, the departing Yu Tianming recalled the scene from the previous day.

The black-haired, green-eyed boy had one hand wrapped around his throat, pinning him against a tree trunk. The usually gentle and quiet face displayed cold cruelty for the first time.

In the close-up panel, the boy’s green eyes were breathtakingly beautiful, icy yet seductive. Presented from Yu Tianming’s first-person perspective, the scene felt intensely immersive, as if the boy stood directly before the reader, softly enunciating:

【Listen to me. I will ensure everyone leaves safely, including you.】

【As long as you listen to me.】

The chapter ended there. Just a few fragmented recollection panels delivered an overwhelming impact to the readers. 

The update had been out for less than half an hour, yet several hot threads about Zhao Mei had already surged rapidly to the top of the forum.

【Serious Discussion: What Exactly Is Zhao Mei’s Identity?】

【Ahhh, Zhao Mei, you kid, you’re secretly an S, aren’t you?】

【The Biggest Aggressive Top in Our “Throne of the Aberrant Realm” Has Appeared…】

Some jokers on the forum even started a poll titled 【Final Battle! “Throne of the Aberrant Realm” Miner Summit!*】. Zhao Mei’s votes were overwhelmingly in the lead among a field of male characters, surpassing even the two most popular male characters, Pei Xi and Sykes.

[T/N- that miner summit part gave me headache, original for Miners word literally meant Worker , but browsed a little bilibli from what I can understand it's probably means A agressive Top (I most probably am wrong) , that's all I know.]

Li Yixin was not particularly surprised that Zhao Mei possessed a white-cut-black attribute. After all, Zhao Mei had always been mysterious. His gentle appearance carried an indistinct sense of distance. According to the analyses of forum experts, he was suspected of having a hidden noble identity and formidable strength.

However, this black cut was simply too dark.

Zhao Mei, who had always blended into the protagonist group with the persona of a gentle and healing beauty, was now revealed, when facing people outside the Cloud Soarers squad, to delicately pinch another person’s neck while smiling and ordering the Prime Minister’s son to obey him.

Seeing her favorite character’s persona undergo such a drastic reversal, Li Yixin felt stunned at first. Yet after the shock faded, she did not feel disillusioned. On the contrary, she felt even more emotionally stirred.

Who could have imagined that a quiet, gentle boy, like a kitten, would turn into such a ferocious beast when dealing with anyone outside his circle?

From the moment this chapter was released, discussions about Zhao Mei dominated the forum for an entire week, temporarily ending everyone’s debates about Ye Zheng. Some people screamed over Zhao Mei’s plot for seven straight days, while others dissected the secrets behind his character.

Zhao Mei was mysterious to such an extent that even readers who were indifferent to his appearance or persona could not help but feel curious about his unrevealed background and hidden strength.

Alongside these massive discussions came a flood of new fans, as well as fanart and fanfiction. Li Yixin thus spent an exceptionally blissful week.

In the second week, she opened the new update full of anticipation. This time, Zhao Mei did not have much screen time, but the shock it delivered was no less intense than his earlier scene of threatening Yu Tianming.

Zhao Mei led the Cloud Soarers squad together with Yu Tianming’s knights in a rescue mission for Sykes. A mysterious blonde girl controlled both Sykes and Aberrant plants, plunging everyone into a fierce battle.

This chapter was packed with one exhilarating fight after another. The Lingyun squad confronted the controlled Sykes. At the critical moment, Pei Xi finally unleashed his long-hidden second ability, 【Death Rewind】, surviving head-on against Sykes’s 【Destruction】.

Immediately afterward, rain began to fall in the manga. Because her ability had been nullified and she had been wandering outside the battlefield, Bai Muqing finally regained her powers. She stopped the rampaging Sykes and pointed out the true core of the situation to everyone.

Although Yinkong had once stated that Bai Muqing’s ability was extremely strong when she first appeared, her actual performance had always been mediocre. It was as though she only possessed the powerful aloof character design, resembling the classic cold and expressionless girl often seen in male-oriented works.

Yet this time, she held off Sykes entirely on her own. The two of them fought so fiercely that nearly half the forest was destroyed.

Li Yixin assumed that the forum’s hot threads this time would revolve around Bai Muqing and Pei Xi. Both had demonstrated extraordinary strength. In hot-blooded shonen manga, while shipping is beloved, discussions of combat power are always a focal point.

However, when Li Yixin saw the white-clad saintess appear once more, moving with nimble grace as she cooperated with Bai Muqing to suppress Sykes, she was completely stunned. At the critical moment, the saintess not only became immune to Sykes’s 【Destruction】, but even pressed Sykes’s head into the puddle formed by the torrential rain.

“Calm yourself properly, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

The saintess restrained the rampaging prince. Her calm expression was accompanied by a slight frown, as though she were scolding a disobedient puppy.

Li Yixin’s mouth fell open. As a former Xi-Sy shipper, her emotions were extremely complicated. That was Sykes, after all, once regarded as the character with the strongest presence in “Throne of the Aberrant Realm”.

Even though her current allegiance was firmly Zhao Mei-only, she still felt that Sykes should not be treated this way. Based on his arrogant and cruel persona, if he regained consciousness and realized he had been handled like this, would he not want to kill Ye Zheng?

Yet as she watched the scene, she could not deny Ye Zheng’s charm. It was exactly like seeing Zhao Mei pinch Yu Tianming’s neck. The contrast was overwhelmingly compelling.

Her friend Tang Mingxi, who also liked Ye Zheng, was absolutely delighted. During their phone call, she exclaimed, “Amazing. My girl stepped on the Crown Prince. Who wouldn’t call her the real queen? Ruling the empire is just a matter of time.”

Li Yixin was deeply shocked by her friend’s extreme career-oriented* mindset. It was the first time she had ever seen such a devoted career fan for a female paper character. Still, Ye Zheng could not possibly take the route of ruling the empire, right? Li Yixin simply regarded it as exaggeration.

[T/N- this I know. Chinese have/had (I don't know current trend) these fandom types Cp fans (ship 2 characters) , Solo-fans, mom-fans etc, among them is career fans Similar to solo fans but they want their stan to achieve Peak of the position without romance and sh!t, Like Idol/Actress story fan want their bias to on every award.]

She opened the forum, and as expected, it was once again dominated by Ye Zheng for an entire week.

【I Really Feel Sorry for Sykes…】

【Is Anyone Discussing Bai Muqing’s Ability?】

【How Should We Evaluate Ye Zheng in the Latest Chapter?】

【Next Miner Summit Please Include Our Ye Zheng, Okay? Thanks】

Some of these hot thread titles did not even mention Ye Zheng, yet upon entering them, the comments were flooded with Ye Zheng-related content, and fan wars raged at full intensity.

In terms of sheer popularity, Ye Zheng did not rank as high as Pei Xi, Sykes, or even Zhao Mei. However, in terms of discussion volume, Li Yixin felt that this woman was the undisputed king of topics.

She was genuinely shocked by the storm Ye Zheng had stirred. Previously, Pei Xi’s fans had already held many grievances against her. This time, Ye Zheng directly offended another top male character in “Throne of the Aberrant Realm”, namely Sykes.

Good grief. Was she offending almost every high-popularity male character fanbase in the series?

At this point, Li Yixin still naively believed that it was fortunate Chaomei and Ye Zheng had no direct interaction. Otherwise, if fans of both characters began fighting, she and Tang Mingxi would be placed in an extremely awkward position.

As a Ye Zheng fan, however, Tang Mingxi felt nothing but delight. She said that watching Sykes fans collapse emotionally was the greatest source of entertainment lately.

Tang Mingxi browsed through all the hot threads on the forum, especially enjoying the chaos in the thread titled 【I Really Feel Sorry for Sykes…】.

【1L: I really feel sorry for Sykes. The so-called strongest, the undying sun of the empire, the greatest villain and archenemy of Throne of the Aberrant Realm, being treated like this. Is this really appropriate?】

【2L: Finally someone said it. Sykes was clearly so proud and dazzling in the first and second stage matches. How did he become this in the third stage? Sigh.】

【3L: Heh. Sykes and Sykes stans enjoy the highest villain benefits outside the manga, yet inside the manga they are treated like clowns. Any random woman can bully him. I won’t say much about this trash plot.】

【4L: Xi-Sy! Ah makes me want to ship again. Being bullied by the same character is also a kind of fate.】

……

【107L: Are Sykes stans really losing their minds like this? Normally, who on the forum even dares to curse Sykes? The one who truly receives villain treatment on the forum is someone else.】

【108L: There’s something off mixed in above. Looks like villain stans really are the lowest of the low. Anyone can step on us?】

【109L: Our Sykes is finally doing better. At least now he can fight Ye Zheng back and forth.】

【110L: To be fair, only Ye Zheng’s healing ability can neutralize Sykes’s power. Pressing him into the water might be excessive, but it was reasonable to sober him up. Honestly, I think it’s a bit erotic.】

【111L: Author, if this keeps up, Sykes will truly become a fanservice and comic relief role. A villain who could have had so much charm reduced to this. Doesn’t your conscience hurt?】

……

【296L: Sad Sykes stans should go read the 3,000-word character analysis next door. Our Sykes really is a deep character. The author doesn’t love him, but we do.】

Tang Mingxi clicked her tongue in amazement. Wasn’t the most complex thing about Sykes simply his face? She genuinely could not see any profound inner depth in him.

Moreover, why did some of the wording in this thread feel so familiar? It felt exactly like the arguments Ye Zheng stans had once used to resist the author.

Watching Sykes stans sarcastically attack Ye Zheng on the forum, Tang Mingxi felt no anger at all. Instead, she experienced a strange sense of satisfaction.

She deliberately dove headfirst into the Sexks stans’ thread and left a single comment.

【476L: The most righteous episode ever. Your male treasure can be beaten whenever my girl feels like it. What’s wrong with that?】

After all, in the latest chapter, Pei Xi had defeated Sykes with outrageously broken abilities, yet she had not seen this group react so hysterically.

Ye Zheng sobered Sykes up. Good job Ye Zheng.

No only Sykes himself did not kneel down to thank her, Sykes stans turned the entire forum upside down to sarcastically attack Ye Zheng. Every last one of them were villains.

Tang Mingxi knew she would be besieged by Sykes stans, so she immediately withdrew and returned to a hot thread started by Ye Zheng stans. There, she happily posted a newly made emoji pack taken from a screenshot of Ye Zheng in the latest chapter.

【I Can Totally Pretend to Heal While Beating You to Death.jpg】

The image came from the scene where Ye Zheng pressed Sykes into the puddle, her face bearing a faint, almost imperceptible gentle smile. 

Although the offensive power was so strong that Tang Mingxi felt it bordered on being out of character, she could not deny how effective it was.

As soon as the emoji pack was posted, many Ye Zheng stans immediately equipped it. Whenever some ungrateful Sykes stan tried to sarcastically attack Ye Zheng, this image of Sykes being forced into the puddle was enough to make them instantly lose their composure.

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Authors Note

┻━⁠━━━━⁠━━⁠━━━⁠┻

Laughing myself to death. It actually isn’t out of character at all.

The forum segment isn’t finished today. Since I have to wake up early tomorrow to supervise the students’ morning reading, I’ll give myself a break. I’ll continue writing tomorrow.