"System, open my status panel," Chu Yi commanded immediately after killing Su Chen, eager to see his current stats.
Host: Chu Yi
Fortune: 327 (Level 3 Villain)
Villain Points: 15,300
Daily Check-in: Once per day
Earnings: One-tenth of gifted items' value
Combat Power: 61 (10 = average human)
Intellect: 41
Charm: 37
Physique: 45
Items: Infant Care Trio, Corpse-Dissolving Powder, One Tier-2 Lottery Spin
Skills: Grandmaster Bajiquan, X-Ray Vision, Aura Suppression
System Store: Unlocked
Compared to before, two new sections—Check-in and Earnings—had been added.
Check-in allowed for a daily reward, while Earnings enabled him to collect a tenth of all gifted items.
It was straightforward, and Chu Yi understood quickly. However, there was still the matter of Su Chen's corpse.
Glancing down at the lifeless body lying in a pool of blood, Chu Yi's gaze turned contemplative.
Ordinarily, with his status, killing someone wouldn't matter. But Su Chen was trending online—his name carried too much attention now. Mishandling this could invite trouble from unwanted eyes.
Wait… didn't he win a bottle of Corpse-Dissolving Powder from the lottery?
His eyes gleamed with a trace of cunning as he recalled the item. With a mere thought, a small porcelain bottle with crackled glaze materialized in his palm.
Chu Yi stepped beside Su Chen's body and knelt down.
Under the dead man's still-wide, unaccepting eyes, he gently poured the powder across his form.
In just a few short seconds, Su Chen's body melted like spring snow, vanishing into thin wisps of smoke that drifted upward into the night sky.
Nothing remained but a faint trace of blood, barely noticeable—his clothing, too, had dissolved completely.
Damn… this powder is vicious.
Chu Yi blinked in slight awe, then quickly sealed what remained in the bottle and tucked it safely into the system inventory.
A murder essential—definitely worth keeping.
On a nearby street, a girl in a white dress with flowing hair wandered hurriedly.
Her face was anxious, eyes darting around as if searching for someone.
That girl was Zhou Xiaofen.
Roughly ten minutes after throwing Su Chen out of her home, she was suddenly struck by regret.
Despite everything, he had always treated her well in daily life. Guilt gnawed at her heart, and she set out to find him and bring him back.
Yet no matter how many times she called, Su Chen never picked up.
Left with no choice, she began searching the streets.
Half an hour passed, and still, there was no sign of him.
Then—just a glance, a fleeting moment—she spotted a striking young man walking ahead.
Her instincts whispered that this man might have seen Su Chen.
In her urgency, Zhou Xiaofen rushed forward.
"Excuse me," she asked breathlessly, "have you seen a tall, handsome young man in a floral shirt and casual pants?"
A floral shirt?
Wasn't that what Su Chen wore?
Chu Yi's expression turned cold as he lifted his gaze.
But when he saw her face, his look eased into calm neutrality.
"No. I haven't seen anyone like that," he replied coolly.
"Oh… I see. Thank you."
Zhou Xiaofen sighed and turned to leave.
But just as she passed him, her eyes met his face—and for a moment, time stilled.
So… so handsome…
His skin was smooth like milk, his features sculpted with an icy allure.
He looked like a prince straight out of a fairytale—elegant and untouchable.
But at that moment, Chu Yi tensed.
A familiar chime echoed in his mind:
Ding! Zhou Xiaofen has developed a 5% favorability toward you due to your appearance.
Gained: 200 Villain Points, 1 Fortune Point.
What the hell… how shallow can you get?
This was the first time Chu Yi had earned favor simply from his looks.
Though part of him felt a faint flicker of satisfaction, that feeling was immediately extinguished.
Because the woman now enamored with him… was Su Chen's fiancée.
And he had just killed Su Chen.
He wasn't ready to face the one left behind.
"I'll be going now," he said abruptly, turning away and striding off into the darkness, leaving Zhou Xiaofen frozen in place.
As she watched his silhouette fade into the night, she shook herself out of her daze.
"Damn it, I'm supposed to be looking for Su Chen. How could I let myself get distracted by a pretty face?"
She shook her head and resumed her search.
Back at the apartment complex, Chu Yi returned to the penthouse of 99 Supreme.
His earlier unease had faded, replaced by a calm, calculated composure.
He understood now why Zhou Xiaofen had appeared in that area.
It was the residual influence of Su Chen's protagonist halo, pulling events back toward the intended plotline.
Originally, Su Chen and Zhou Xiaofen were destined to be together.
So her sudden arrival made sense.
But now… Su Chen was dead, his body erased from this world.
Soon, Zhou Xiaofen would find no trace of him—and life would simply go on.
Su Chen would vanish from existence entirely.
Understanding this, Chu Yi picked up his phone and made a call.
"Hey, Wu Ji. There's no need to hype up those online articles anymore," he said flatly.
"What? Why not? We haven't even finished dragging Su Chen through the mud yet!"
Wu Ji's voice on the other end was full of confusion.
He had just started enjoying the chaos. Now he was being told to stop?
"Because Su Chen… will never appear again."
What?!
That single sentence sent a chill down Wu Ji's spine.
He knew exactly what Chu Yi meant.
This wasn't a joke. It was a declaration. Final and absolute.
Wu Ji went silent for a moment. Then, with a cautious tone, he replied:
"Understood, Brother Chu. I'll tell all the influencers and celebrities to stop spreading the story."
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The call ended.
And in Chu Yi's eyes… a cold light flickered.